Moving Namibia's Youth Forward

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Moving Namibia’s

Youth Forward

Namibia’s entrepreneurial youth in the spotlight of the (inter-)national development agendas

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

PUBLICATION FOREWORD and developed. While this publication does not assert the claim to provide a comprehensive approach to these challenges, it aims to inspire and encourage the entrepreneurial youth of Namibia to take destiny into their own hands.

Further, decision makers across all sectors are being reminded of their responsibility to contribute to a conducive environment, enabling the youth of Namibia and beyond to achieve their aspirations.

Against this backdrop, the publication seeks to explore where we are in terms of the current entrepreneurship growth and development climate in Namibia; how we can get to where we want to be and; how the youths aspirations are represented in the development agendas namely: The National Development Plan (NDP5), Vision 2030, The Harambee Prosperity Plan guided by the themes of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Dr. Clemens von Doderer Hanns Seidel Foundation Namibia, Head of Office

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ustainable youth entrepreneurship in Namibia is becoming not only an increasingly prominent challenge but at the same time an opportunity to viable economic growth and sustainable job creation. During the “Sustainable Economic Development Opportunities for Youth in Namibia” full-day conference, held at the Franco Namibia Cultural Centre on 7 September 2017, participants identified a number of challenges to sustainable economic development, including access to funding, mentorship programs and skills development trainings.

The aim of the conference was to bring together young people from a wide variety of backgrounds to discuss their aspirations, challenges and recommendations on topics such as youth entrepreneurship, job creation and skills development.

The outcomes of the conference

were fed into the 5th AU-EU Summit which took place in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, on 28-29 November 2017.

This year the Summit took place under the central theme ‘Investment in Youth for a sustainable future’, which has become a key priority for Europe as well as Africa alike. More than 5 000 participants attended the summit, including 83 Heads of States representing 55 African countries and 28 European countries.

Particularly in an African context, the demographic trends, creating major challenges for young people in terms of migration, security and sustainable employment, require a new way forward to provide political guidance and to pave the way for future works.

As the issues affecting the participation of the Namibian youth in entrepreneurship are interconnected, a holistic approach in addressing these issues needs to be identified

Consequently, the publication contributes to the empowerment of the entrepreneurial youth of Namibia with the knowledge to pursue their business ideas, confident in their skills in conducting a business and empowered by the fact that their success will be the success of the country at large.

As it is widely agreed, there is great potential for the youth in Namibia to actively pursue and realize their entrepreneurial dreams and give back to the community through the creation of sustainable jobs and economic growth.

With a word of encouragement for the youth in Namibia to take their destiny into their own hands, allow me to conclude with William Ernest Henley’s words:

“I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul”.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

A sit-down with Jana Hybaskova

banking and all these things, to really make young people not only think that cattle is something they inherit from their grandfathers, but something that is their future.

Luca Milanesi

Luca Milanesi: The EU is of the view investment into Namibian youth is important. Why? Jana Hybaskova: The EU is present in 53 African countries with a very key and clear aim: to support the development of Africa. The EU delegation is present in Namibia to further strengthen the stability of Namibia.

What is the biggest risk to the stability of Namibia are the enormous social disparities. We are trying whatever we can to decrease social disparities and because of the demographic dividend, and a growing young population, the question of decreasing the social disparities definitely goes to Namibian youth. If the youth does not enter the labour market, if Namibia does not have equal opportunities, if there is a backlog to social mobility in Namibia, we will not reach our goal and our aim of stability of Namibia. Therefore, we are present to do everything we can to keep open the mobility channels, to open as much as we can the elasticity of the labour market and to allow young people as much as they can, to be ready and to be empowered to make decisions regarding their own lives.

Milanesi: What other programmes are available for the youth in this respect?

Hybaskova: We are dealing with developmental support to Namibia, always in cooperation with the government.

We were asked by the government to be present in two focal sectors: education and livestock support in the northern communal areas. In the education sector, we provide budgetary support .That means we send money from the European budget to the local treasury to support the development of early childhood development centres. We have learned that especially in remote communities, children who do not attend early childhood development or pre-primary schools have a much higher drop-out rate than those who do. We want to establish equal opportunities for children, starting from early childhood development. We are working together with Unicef to bring better standards to early childhood

Milanesi: Is there anything that we can learn from the EU to ensure that the youth is integrated into the developmental agendas?

Jana Hybaskova EU Ambassador to Namibia development, to pre-primary and primary schools, better classrooms, better quality of teachers, hygiene and nutrition. These are all things which will support healthy, sustainable, stable development and equal opportunities for Namibian children. We have a particular programme in the northern communal areas which is called: ‘Creating centres of excellence of training’, in vocational and educational training centres. There are three centres and they can become a hub of excellence for vocational and educational training in Namibia. In this project, we partnered with German development assistance, both with GIZ and KFW. The budget for education is 28 million euros, roughly. Other support is the creation of sustainable cattle breeding in the northern communal areas. These farmers depend on functioning abattoirs, markets, healthy animals, the provision of the veterinary services and extension services. How this relates to the youth is very clear: We want farming in the northern areas to focus on entrepreneurship, we want to make young people interested in having animals that can be auctioned for prices seen south of the red line.

This we cannot do without the youth, because it needs an understanding of how to do auctions, how to relocate and how to use new methods like e-

Hybaskova: It’s a very complex question. There are some member states [of the EU] where the situation is uneven, which are having a lot of difficulties with youth unemployment. We have other countries where the situation is much better, but we have some countries where the situation is appalling. We have different educational systems, we have different layers of the economy, so there are lessons to be learnt, but I think what is important is to again mention that Europeans strive for equal opportunity. We, wherever we go, try to do one thing: to open as many mobility channels to give as many chances for kids from these underdeveloped regions. There is a unique regional policy inside the EU supporting underdeveloped areas.

I think first of all, one must support as inclusive education as possible and offer high quality education to as many as possible. And second is, and this is to be learnt from Germany, is that the countries which have a much better appreciation for vocational and educational training are doing much better. Germany speaks for all. There are countries where the vocational education and training is not very successful, and they are now trying to find ways on how to reintroduce vocational education and training, so kids can more easily find their way to the labour market. And last but not least, this is quite a new message, but we are working very hard on it, especially in central and eastern European countries, we are learning that mathematical literacy is key .That means mathematics for kids in primary schools, in secondary schools and especially mathematics for girls is something of enormous importance. It is of enormous importance for Namibia because Namibia by virtue of its economic set-up needs to develop the service sector.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

The Namibian Youth for Sustainable Economic Development Opportunities Emily Kandanga

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amibia is a young country yet to realize her full potential of sustainable economic growth and sustainability. Youth entrepreneurship in Namibia is a great opportunity for public and private entities to plow back to the community and affect sustainable economic growth and job creation for Namibia.

Youth enterprise development is one of the key outcomes under the Economic Advancement pillar in the Harambee Prosperity Plan. With 36.8 percent of the population between the age group 15-34 years, Namibia has a bulging young population. Regrettably of the broad 28.1 percent unemployment rate, 39.2 percent (2014) unemployed are youth. It is, therefore, Government’s strategic intent to develop and harness this human resource capacity, to contribute towards employment creation and SME driven economic growth, propelled by the youth.

progress made in the implementation of commitments made and provide political guidance for further work.

The Conference was organized in close collaboration with the National Youth Council, the Hanns Seidel Foundation, AIESEC, German Cooperation, and the Franco-Namibian Cultural Centre.

The conference was attended by over 120 youth delegates from all walks of life, including the representation of 10 of Namibia’s 13 regions, aspiring entrepreneurs and the general public. In attendance were also representatives from the EU Member States in Windhoek, Namibian senior government officials including the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Presidential Advisor on Youth Matters and Enterprise Development, senior officials of the National Youth Council of Namibia, the media, civil society and private sector.

Providing a platform where the youth can openly voice their aspirations and challenges to viable economic growth and job creation was the objective at the “Sustainable Economic Development Opportunities for Youth in Namibia” full-day conference, held on the 7th of September 2017 at the Franco Namibia Cultural Centre.

The conference saw attendees from various walks of life.

Registration of the participants of the youth conference

The outcomes of the conference were fed to the EU-Africa Summit of Heads of States and Governments, an event which takes place every three years alternatively in Africa and Europe. These summits are held to take stock of the

The aim of the conference was to bring together the different voices, ideas, and opinions to discuss the barriers to sustainable economic growth and job creation in Namibia and how we can empower each other to overcome them.

The Conference followed a threepronged approach to ensure that all the set-out objectives were met. These were: the official opening, a panel discussion, break-away group discussions and presentation followed by closing remarks by the Country Director of the Hanns Seidel Foundation in

Namibia, Dr Clemens von Doderer.

The Namibian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Honourable Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah delivered the keynote address in which she underlined the need for a holistic approach towards youth development of which health education should be part of the efforts. She noted that “education is only one tool to escape poverty.” Honourable Nandi-Ndaitwah called upon the youth to engage in agriculture, noting that more than half of Namibia’s population lives in rural areas.

Therefore, it is essential to identify and create job opportunities in the rural areas as this can be a good strategy to curb rural-urban migration. In the same vein, Honourable Ndaitwah suggested that a productive agricultural sector can contribute to Namibia’s goal to become self-sufficient in terms of food production for food security.

Honourable Ndaitwah addressing the youth.

The Executive Chairperson of the National Youth Council of Namibia welcomed the participants and noted that promoting entrepreneurship and employability presented the delegates with dynamic and potent mechanisms to prepare our youth the monumental shifts in the nature and structure of employment relations anticipated to take place since the industrial revolution began in England more than 300 years ago. He called for more investments in the education, skills development, leadership capabilities and in the health of our youth.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD try and the advancements the sector can bring to Namibia’s development.

Chairperson of the National Youth Council, Mandela Kapere.

The EU Ambassador to Namibia, Her Excellency, Jana Hybaskova informed the conference about the paradigm shift in relations between the EU and Africa from traditional development cooperation towards increased engagement in trade and investment.

She further emphasized that support from the EU aims to bring about regional integration and intra-regional trade. She urged the youth to familiarize themselves with the training programmes offered by the EU such as the Erasmus Mundus Programme, which provides scholarship opportunities and exchange programmes.

His Excellency Christian-Matthias Schlaga, the German Ambassador to Namibia.

A panel discussion composed of the Presidential Advisor on Youth Matters and Enterprise Development; senior officials from the Ministry of Industrialization, Trade and SME Development, the Namibian Training Authority, Speaker of the Namibian Youth Parliament as well as representatives from the private sector shared their expertise with the delegates. The discussions were centered on existing provisions and available opportunities particularly in the field of vocational training, entrepreneurship and community tourism. The panelist noted the high unemployment rate, particularly among the youth in Namibia (43, 4%) according to the Namibia Labour Force Survey of 2016 is a serious cause for concern, as it creates social fragility.

Ambassador Jana Hyabaskova of the EU.

In his statement, His ExcellencyChristian-Matthias Schlaga, the German Ambassador to Namibia, highlighted that in order to harness the “demographic dividend”, huge investments are necessary. Without these investments into social infrastructure, the education of young people and the creation of jobs, the youth bulge will not be turned into an asset for the development of the country. The German cooperation supports Namibia in some of these issues, for example through its technical cooperation programmes on vocational education and training as well as promotion of competitiveness. Finally, he encouraged the youth in Namibia to explore the possibilities of the Information and Communications Technology indus-

challenge in this respect while noting that it is not just enough to have a good business idea, one also needs to know the inner workings of a running a business.

Observations from the floor expressed that there is a lack of a service-oriented mentality and especially among those just coming out of university with high expectations concerning salaries and what the job they get should entail. Delegates from the floor advised that a shift in attitudes is key and that one needs to be prepared to start from an entry level, get their hands dirty and do the work which some often consider to be beneath what they studied.

An active audience member voicing her concerns

During the breakaway sessions four parallel discussions were held to identify issues affecting the youth in areas of financing for youth entrepreneurship; essential skills and competencies, improving the regulatory and legal climate; and innovative business ideas. Each group had a facilitator and they were required to come up with key recommendations to tackle these problems

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The panel had very insightful antidotes to share with the audience.

In regard to entrepreneurship, the panelists agreed that the country needs entrepreneurship but also considered that entrepreneurship is not the ‘silver bullet’, nor is it for everyone. The experts advised that it might be better for some to first gain some experience on the job before trying to set up a business of their own. The lack of financial and business management skills was identified as a big

Finance for youth entrepreneurship breakaway session.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Financing for youth entrepreneurship: This group observed

the importance of financial and business acumen while recognizing lack of capacity among young people as one of the stumbling blocks between them and access to financing.

Emily Kandanga, holds an honors degree in Event Management and is the Project Officer at the Hanns Seidel Foundation Namibia The absence of a dedicated fund for youth enterprise development as well as lack of collateral was also identified as major factors hindering youth to fully engage in entrepreneurship.

In addition, the lack of trust by investors and commercial financial institutions to finance youth –owned enterprises due to the risk perception attached was also observed.

Essential skills and competencies:

In this group, skills and competencies

were ‘unpacked’ and the following areas were highlighted as important: a) entrepreneurial skills, mentorship and incubation centres; re-skilling or continuously acquiring new skills and articulation between different training institutions.

Participants were encouraged to share any solutions they think could be implemented to tackle the challenges entrepreneurs face.

Improving the regulatory and legal climate: This group observed the importance of training and retraining of our civil servants.

They also suggested that civil servants interact with people in the business industry so that regulations and policies correspond to their needs and

to that of the changing environment.

Human resource is one of the important assets of a company and entrepreneurs that are starting out need to be familiar with the labor law and how to apply it properly.

Innovative business ideas: Observations from this group included the acknowledgement of the beneficial role that local institutions such as the Namibia Business Innovation Institute (NBII) play in training, mentoring and providing business support to entrepreneurs. Additionally, the group observed the need to identify and capitalize on the various innovative business opportunities to come out of the challenges that the Namibian youth face daily. The group also emphasized the importance of creating platforms for entrepreneurs to test and improve their products, ideas and services.

Initiatives like the youth conference are a great avenue to facilitate the relevant discussions with various key stakeholders and to develop strategies geared towards the sustainable economic growth and development for the youth in Namibia and that support the national development agendas.

Namibia’s Current Entrepreneur Climate Immanuel Hango

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ntrepreneurship is defined as the development or creation of new products and or a service. Namibia exports mostly all the natural resources, raw and unprocessed because there’s no local market or technical knowhow to process such resources.

Through this process, the country also imports the much needed jobs and wealth, resulting in the country experiencing high volumes of capital outflow and depletion of the foreign reserve as most of the transactions is denoted in U.S dollars.

Opportunities do exist for Namibian entrepreneurs in the manufacturing and service sectors targeting the global market. Currently, Namibia imports products from toilet paper to automobiles, while exporting products

such as bulk salt, which can be processed to produce various chemicals.

However, the lack of skill sets is hampering the development of entrepreneurship growth in Namibia. Skills development is a never ending lifelong exercise that should start right from birth.

Due to the countries colonial background the majority of the population was only exposed to “Bantu education” before independence, this system prepared graduates to become employees who often became police officers, farm workers, teachers or nurses.

Entrepreneurship is a culture and the skill can be instilled in mental telepathy from an early age. Even though the government has introduced entrepreneurship as a subject in the secondary school curriculum, the effectiveness of this initiative is better if it begins

at early childhood development. This would not only encourage them to develop the hunger to establish a business, but also become an employer.

There are vocational institutions in the country that offer various skills training for secondary school graduates who did not pursue a tertiary education at Universities or Technicon’s.

Sadly, most of the graduates from vocational training centres usually pursue employment both in the private and public sector instead of setting up their own businesses and generating employment.

Too often in Namibia we come across entrepreneurs who have an innovative idea’s or just a dream, but lack of skill sets to ripen their ideologies.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Industrialised nations and countries such as Israel (which is known as a start-up nation) to be specific, have many incubation centres funded by the government or non-governmental organisations where entrepreneurs can have office space and basic amenities such as Internet for free where they can develop their business idea’s and get groomed by mentors with specific knowledge and/or skill.

Funding for entrepreneurs in Namibia is one of the biggest obstacles that hamper the development of the industry and this was confirmed by the survey conducted in 2016. Respondents were asked about the challenges they think Namibian entrepreneurs face, 57.1% of the respondents indicated that the lack of financial support is the greatest problem most entrepreneurs face in either starting or running their business.

Angel investors and venture capitalists are almost non-existent in Namibia with the former mostly only giving access to working capital. Idea development has three major stages, namely the development stage, implementation stage and the operational stage. The biggest obstacle the entrepreneurs face when it comes to finance is when their project is at the development stage. This is the stage where the entrepreneur has to prove to potential funders and all other key stakeholders that the project is feasible, looking at the political, economic, social and technical aspect of the project.

This requires the project proponent to do a detailed feasibility study with specialist reports conducted by reputable organisations and individuals. If the study concludes that the project is not feasible, then the proponent has to write off all incurred costs as sunk costs. Unfortunately, the financial banks are not ready to take these risks of losing money but are only interested in funding entrepreneurs

Immanuel Hango, a registered professional Engineer (Civil) and completed a Business and Entrepreneurship track at Drake University as a part of the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, where he also met the then US President Barack Obama. He also holds an MBA in Entrepreneurship from Steinbeis University, Berlin or idea/projects that have all the potentials risks already identified and well mitigated.

Developmental capital can be set aside under the research and development budget to cater for developing business ideas in order to prepare them to bid for financial support. For the government to reach its Vision 2030 target, 3% of its annual financial budget must be allocated to research and development on par with developed nations to stimulate growth and plug the financial gap that currently cannot be filled by the existing financial institutions.

Entrepreneurs running small companies in the private sector, who passed all the complexities of initial business development have to face another major obstacle in hiring competent people to help them run their company, however, competing with large multinationals in the quest for a small pool of skilled individuals can be a challenge. Hiring inexperienced employees and offering on the job training can be a costly exercise as the employees

often travel abroad to attend specific trainings.

Even though the country has established an economic policy to attract foreign direct investment into manufacturing and value additions, this has resulted in foreign construction companies obtaining work that can be readily done by Namibian entrepreneurs.

Foreign retailers, mostly from the Far East region penetrate all the corners of the country and push out local upcoming SMEs by selling finished products at a much cheaper price.

In countries such as China, political connection or ‘guan xi’ as it is commonly referred to, can provide a ticket to business success and give an entrepreneur access to business information that is not readily accessible to the general public. In the Namibian context, however, the government is one of the most transparent amongst the countries in Africa, with an independent judicial system where entrepreneurs do not necessarily need Government ‘connections’ to establish and grow their businesses, the essence of social networking is still paramount and should be highly emphasised.

Entrepreneurship to a certain extent is taking shape in Namibia, but this author believes that the wheel is not turning fast enough.

Many young people have a dream of starting up their own enterprises, but the lack of developmental capital is the biggest block in launching their ventures successfully. The country needs an established system or channel of venture capitalist, angel investors or donors to bridge the gap that cannot be filled by the various financial institutions. Incubation and/or mentorship programs are also paramount in nurturing aspiring Namibian entrepreneurs in addressing the lack of skill sets, funding, and human resource capital.

Namibia Development Trust Ronny Dempers

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outh in Namibia make up 56 percent of the Namibian population. Namibia Development Trust (NDT) therefore

views the youth as the generation that matters most if Namibia is to achieve its quest for prosperity for all.

In all its work and operations NDT considers youth as a very important

asset. For example, concerning the current employment of staff, youth constitute fifty percent (50%) of NDT staff compliment.

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8 Current work of NDT in the rural areas of Namibia is mainly through community formations such as conservancies, community forests and cooperatives.

Conservancies are registered with the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET),while Community Forests and Cooperatives are registered with the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry (MAWF). These local institutions function as engines of growth and offer employment platforms for the rural youth.

Conservancies and community forests are local institutions formed by communal residents, in order to gain rights and benefits over wildlife and tourism through sustainable natural resource management practices. Community forests are also local institutions that give communities rights over their forests resources including grazing. Cooperatives are member based and are formed by people with common needs in order to address those needs. In Namibia, there are 153 cooperatives, 83 conservancies, 1 registered community conservation association and 32 registered community forests.

NDT works through collaborative efforts involving other civil society organisations and government Ministries in supporting these community formations. One of its critical roles is to provide leadership for important national level organisations that impact development work at different levels.

There is a national consortium called Nacso which supports conservancies and community forests. NACSO is made out of different member organisations such as NNF, IRDNC, SRT, OMBA, NNDFN, CCF, LAC and UNAM. They work collective and have been able to achieve impressive results in support of the Community Based Natural Resource Management Programme. Also as part of this consortium, NDT specialises and provides support in the areas of institutional development and governance. These areas remain critical to the development of conservancies and community forests.

Conservancies at national level have provided 853 employment opportunities during 2016. Many who are em-

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD ployed in conservancies have started as young people and have because of these employment opportunities escaped the temptation of moving from towns and cities in search for employment.

Another leadership role is in the promotion of cooperatives were the NDT Director was nominated for the past three years (2014 – 2017) as the Chairperson of the Cooperative Advisory Board (CAB). The key role of CAB is to advise the Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry (MAWF) on policy related matters regarding cooperative development in Namibia. One notable achievement of the CAB under the leadership of NDT, is the review of the National Cooperative Policy.

Ronny Dempers is the Executive Director of NDT and continues to contribute towards development efforts of Namibia through various civil society formations. He provides strategic leadership in various structures such as being the current chairperson of Nacso and also has been the Chairperson of the Co-operative Advisory Board of Namibia (2014 – 2017) One of the provisions of the new policy is that it makes explicit mention of the role of women, youth and persons living with disabilities in cooperatives.

The policy recognises that youth form a large proportion of the work force in Namibia and therefore, there is an urgent need to utilise the large human resource potential within the youth. To do so in order to develop economically viable programs that through cooperation, shall create jobs and income in order to address the high rates of national unemployment.

The policy further recognise that youth lack the financial resources necessary for investment, and the collaterals that would be required by banks in order to obtain credit facilities. In order to accelerate job creation in Namibia through effective policy change, the Minister shall encourage the creation of youth –centred workers or service cooperatives.

The policy further provides for the formation of cooperatives focusing on youth development in all the economic sectors of Namibian economy.

It further involves the formation of school and college cooperatives, operated by students, and involved in activities such as school gardens and tuck shops as a way of encouraging cooperative development at a young age.

With this policy provision, NDT believes that it opens more opportunities for youth involvement in cooperatives as a way of learning about business and entrepreneurship at a young age, and for using such cooperatives business models for their own empowerment.

The community formations that are supported by NDT, in collaboration with others, provide opportunities for youth to take on leadership and management responsibilities. As youth in rural areas have better literacy levels they are very often voted into leadership positions in the rural based community formations.

Thus, our work and the approach we offer is in line of the NDP 5 motto, which is about working together towards prosperity. NDT places a high premium on collaborating with others. This is why we work with NACSO, participate and provide leadership to the CAB, as all of this is aimed at working together towards prosperity.

Finally, NDT resources are geared towards rural areas as this is where the majority of our people still reside live.

Our work reaches out to communities that are very often marginalised and without a voice and we believe that our special skills in organisation and institutional building enable communities to organise themselves better and through that gain a voice.

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Progress Namibia

Engaging Young Namibians in the Sustainable Development Goals: Games for the SDGs

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here is much evidence suggesting that games and simulation tools are an effective and engaging method in grasping complex concepts and systems.

For this very reason, there has been a growing pedagogy around using such tools for complex themes such as sustainability and systems thinking.

The Sustainable Development Goals, popularly known as the SDGs, launched two years ago, form the blueprint for sustainable development both nationally and globally. These goals are the universal set of goals, targets and indicators that all United Nations countries (including Namibia) will use to frame their development agendas and political policies over the next 13 years.

It is important that we all understand them and support them fully if we want to avoid collapse, and prosper as a human society. However, the SDGs are a complex set of interlinked goals that need to be understood both in their entirety as one system, as well as individually. To understand these, one has to understand systems and critical thinking.

Think Namibia, Progress Namibia, the National Youth Council, the Namibian Youth Coalition on Climate Change and others formed a small group to run simulations and games last year to better understand and act upon the SDGs. The initiative, now running for a year, came after the team hosted a climate negotiation simulation called ‘World Climate’, which put young participants in the seats of world leaders and gave them a feel of how the UN negotiations work. This was done through engaging them in the drama and tension of global politics, and testing their ambitions against the climate simulation model.

The game was conducted in the runup to the World Climate Summit (COP-22), which was held in 2016 in

Marrakesh, Morocco.

The World Climate Game was a highly effective tool for young people to understand the importance and difficulties of these decisions, which include the interplay of different motivations and needs of countries forging their development paths.

The game was successful, and thus a series of games were developed with the aim of enhancing awareness, understanding and motivation to support the Sustainable Development Goals. Every last Friday of the month during 2017, the team would host a different game at the House of Democracy.

Eight games were played this year, after the World Climate Game we did the Privilege Walk, which looked at privileges in society and illustrated the complexities associated with poverty and inequality. The game spoke to Goal 1 of the SDGs, which aims to eradicate poverty, and Goal 10, which focuses on reducing inequality.

This is a yearly global meeting where the world leaders meet to take decisions that have widereaching effects on the ability of our planet to support human life The third game, the Harvest Game, was about marine resources and sustainable utilisation and management of a common and shared resource (Goal 14, which looks at marine resources).

The fourth game was a debate about wildlife crimes and poaching and economic development, and meant to help internalise the message of the importance of halting biodiversity loss and promote the awareness of sustainability as a prerequisite in eco-

nomic development (Goal 15 of the SDGs focuses on halting biodiversity loss).

The fifth game, the Paper Bag Game, focused on Goal 8 (decent work and economic growth) and the complexities behind creating economic growth and decent work for all. The sixth game, the Food for All Game, led the group of participants through a shared experience in which they confront the reality of vanishing resources, such as arable land. The Goals related to this game were Goal 2 (end hunger), Goal 10 (equality), Goal 12 (consumption), Goal 15 (biodiveristy and land management).

The seventh game of the series, the Community-based Decision Game, showed the connection between unsustainable development and human and environmental health (all goals were connected, but particularly Goal 3, health, Goal 6, water and sanitation, and Goal 8, economic growth and jobs).

The final game of the year, Shop-tillyou-drop, was a game that aimed to promote sustainable consumption and production patterns and to demonstrate the inequality of wealth among people (Goal 10 and Goal 12).

These games provided a platform for Namibian citizens to come together, learn and have deep dialogues about the important challenges we face, in an informal and friendly setting. Many of the participants, particularly the youth, are the future drivers of development. However, many of them are facing a lot of challenges in our changing world.

The Games for the SDGs work towards impacting the life of participants in becoming change-makers by enhancing their ability to understand complex global problems, think outside the box for solutions, and successfully drive social change towards a better future.

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Financial Literacy Initiative

The Need for Financial Capability for Youth Francois Brand

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he inception of the Financial Literacy Initiative (FLI) in 2012 aged in a new agenda of education for the prospects of many Namibians. This is of great importance since although Namibians have high levels of financial knowledge (51.2) and low levels of financial behaviour (32.4), this translates into low levels of overall financial literacy.

The average Financial Literacy Score of Namibians with no formal education is 24% and the average Financial Literacy Score of Namibians with a University degree or diploma is 71%.

With this disparity and the high rate of general poor financial literacy levels, it becomes clear why broad based National Financial Education is a national concern. Since its inception FLI has raised awareness about the importance of financial education for several communities in Namibia and has annually implemented a series of successful initiatives to make financial concepts easier to digest and thus making it a national reality.

With reference to the Financial Literacy Baseline Survey of 2013, Namibia displayed moderate levels of financial knowledge and lower levels of financial behaviour which, unfortunately, leads to overall lower levels in financial literacy. Other concerning observations were that 62% of Namibians have difficulty in keeping their financial commitments, only 32% stick to their budget, 33% save money regularly and 26% own insurance products.

This is indicative of poor financial literacy amongst Namibians and reiterates the importance of this topic.

The FLI knows that running a business when you are still young may be quite challenging. To address this challenge FLI has largely focused on empowering and educating youth en-

trepreneurs in areas of financial management. This is done to encourage responsible and sustainable business leaders. The programme ultimately seeks to equip youth entrepreneurs with the financial skills to feasibly grow their businesses.

al financial literacy rate shall be increased by 2020.”

Furthermore NDP 5 has Financial Capability outcomes that stipulate “Initiate financial literacy programs especially in rural areas and at the school level”.

Francois Brand, FLI Manager, Deputy Director for Financial Education and Consumer Protection at Ministry of Finance

With regards to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) highlights that “Financial inclusion is positioned prominently as an enabler of other development goals in the 2030 SDGs, where it is featured as a target in eight of the seventeen goals.”

The FLI promotes and uses Simulation-Based Trainings. What distinguishes these trainings from the “traditional” SME programme is that it simulates various business processes and decisions. The training uses a board game where the participants simulate the running of their own businesses. Participants were prompted to make actual decisions and see the impacts their decisions have, for example, on their balance sheets. The interactive nature of the simulation based trainings have received high praise from participants.

“This training will for sure make an everlasting difference in my financial life and life in general. Before I touch anything now from my business, I think of the income statement and the effect it has on my balance statement value. Even though it has not even been a day, I am thankful I got this opportunity to see my (money) finances from a completely different perspective.

THANK YOU GUYS REALLY”.

-Training Participant In the Namibian Financial Sector Strategy, Financial Literacy is referred to in outcome 3B, “The nation-

These include: • SDG1 on eradicating poverty • SDG 2 on ending hunger, achieving food security and promoting sustainable agriculture • SDG 3 on profiting health and wellbeing • SDG 5 on achieving gender equality and economic empowerment of women; • SDG 8 on promoting economic growth and jobs • SDG 9 on supporting industry, innovation, and infrastructure • SDG 10 on reducing inequality • SDG 17 on strengthening the means of implementation there is an implicit role for greater financial inclusion through greater savings mobilization for investment and consumption that can spur growth.

The entrepreneurial youth of Namibia need to be aware of the need of effective financial management as most SMEs struggle with cash flow during the first three years of business. This can be mitigated for by ensuring that every investment made into the business is based on accurate and realistic financial projections.

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11

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD NAMIBIA

Financial Knowledge

51.18

financial Behaviour

32.26

Financial Literacy Score

42.75

DO YOU HAVE A SEPARATE BUDGET FOR YOUR BUSINESS?

• 57% of business owners indicated that they have a separate budget for their business

43%

57%

• A total of 73% of MSMEs save a portion of their business income

Yes

No

Source: National Financial Capability Survey 2013, Financial Literacy Initiative

The Present and Future of MSMEs in Namibia Mpho Katjiuongua

A

Philosophy and Psychology graduate from the University of Pretoria currently perusing masters in Development Economics at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) University of London.

Destined to be the avenue for financial independence, and the saviour of Namibia’s mammoth public service wage bill, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have been championed as the future of Namibia’s economy.

As advocated by the Minister of Industrialization, Trade and SME Development (MITSMED) Honourable Immanuel Ngatjizeko, MSMEs provide innovative products and services to the Namibian market while also fostering a competitive business environment for private entrepreneurial activities.

Globally this pattern also proves to be true, according to the World banks, MSMEs represent the most common form of entrepreneurship worldwide.

One that is run by people of the local community, people who understand the needs of their surroundings, and respond appropriately to their demands.

These social circumstances foster trust, continuity, and self-confidence within the community if done correctly. They really are the business of Category

the people.According to MITSMED, MSMEs are rather flexible and often move juxtaposed to technological innovation, while also being growth orientated and a major contributor to job creation.

They also play a key role as alternative suppliers and clientele for larger industries and therefore are always knocking on the doors of larger companies.

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No. of full-time employees

And/or

Annual turnover (N$)

Micro-enterprises

1 to 10

And/or

0 to 300 000

Small enterprise

11 to 30

And/or

300 001 to 3 000 000

Medium enterprise

31 to 100

And/or

3 000 000 to 10 000 000

SOURCE: National Policy on Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises in Namibia 2016 - 2021

12 Although definitions vary internationally, in Namibia SMEs are broadly defined by two main criteria: the number of full-time employees employed and the annual turnover as indicated by the graph below: In Namibia there are approximately 33,700 operating MSMEs. Of that total roughly 15,000 have been registered, while in total providing income and employment to more than 160,000 Namibians according to MITSMED. MSMEs are said to contribute to 12% of Namibia’s GDP, although the ministry has admitted that this figure is outdated, with most operating within the retail industry, 25% in food related products and the rest are mostly dedicated to service provision.

Furthermore, the growing popularity of MSMEs continues to echo the MITSMED’s 2015-2020 policy for “Growth at Home,” which advocated for commodity-based industrialization that could enhance both local and national value chains increasing the proportion of income generated at each stage of production for Namibians themselves.

Such aspirations also demand strategic investment in infrastructure and better logistical records in order to improve the ease and capacity of doing business in Namibia, between Namibians. The days are gone were Namibia could remain content with foreign investment relating to the extraction of raw materials for export, and excuses concerning poor manufacturing facilities and a lack of skilled labour.

MITSMED initiatives such as the Sites and Premises Development programme, which has begun construction on affordable industrial operating premises for entrepreneurs in Opuwo, Outapi, Kalkrand, Tsumeb, Omaruru, Walvis Bay, Divundu and Rundu, focus on creating hubs of business activity for Namibian business and greater opportunities for employment.

The Equipment Aid Scheme (EAS) was created to provide financial assistance to MSMEs in order to acquire capital intensive equipment necessary for production. Through this scheme the Ministry has since been able to successfully secure equipment for MSME usage, worth approximately N$ 6, 501, 883 that has gone on to assist one 131 beneficiaries and counting.

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD With that said it seems that MSMEs can do no wrong, and that Namibia’s potential can finally be unleashed, or so it seems. Although MSMEs have been advocated for in speeches across government, and large amounts of money are being pumped into pushing them forward, there are issues that must still be addressed.

To begin, the financial difficulties faced with getting an MSME off the ground is a worldwide phenomenon and is especially difficult within developing countries according to the World Bank. Namibians turn to the government for financial aid, subsidies for rent and capital for equipment just to get going, and the government respond. Such bailout culture is not sustainable as it undermines the capacity to sustain a highly competitive market starting from the drawing board.

Mpho Katjiuongua a Philosophy and Psychology graduate from the University of Pretoria currently perusing masters in Development Economics at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) University of London Many private companies consider MSMEs as high-risk investments and logically stay clear of any such involvement.

It may be easy to vilify these companies, but quite frankly MSMEs are not a charity project, they exist to achieve business excellence in their respective fields and make a profit. Not to mention that historically it’s not easy to find statistics documenting the longevity of MSMEs in Namibia which would aid in building investor confidence if the overall trend appeared positive.

Under such conditions, one must ask what incentives does the private sector have to invest in locally owned MSMEs? Indeed, all companies have corporate responsibility to the community at large, but exercising that responsibility must still be

done sustainably for both the company and the community’s sake.

In order to reconcile the potential for MSMEs, with the financial risk involved in investment one must ask the obvious questions, why are MSMEs in Namibia so risky? Are the people that we call on to be our MSME champions sufficiently equipped to succeed in the world of business? This question is essential because the answer could provide clarity on where both government and private investors could best invest, in order to improve the average returns of MSMEs in the country.

In my opinion, strategic investment in education is important to maximizing the potential of MSMEs in Namibia. Institutionalizing in business and financial education is key, as children at school must be introduced to the basic concepts of starting one’s own business and clearly identifying the importance of financial independence at an early age.

Beginning at the grass root level, having children progressively learn about business in Namibia, through a series of books, videos, and realistic case studies could motivate individuals to associate their ideas of business opportunities with the Namibian context. Popularizing competitions between students, schools and regions creates networks and a reservoir of innovation within diverse industries throughout the country.

Considering business associated fields as priority funding areas for the Namibian Student Financial Aid Fund (NSFAF), could further accelerate the number of proactive business students and put pressure on the availability and quality of academic institutions providing diverse courses on relating to business. One such example is business within the renewable energy sector, a sector that is truly on the rise worldwide and has great room for growth in Namibia.

For those outside academic institutions, the state should consider further strategic training facilities that allow entrepreneurs to progressively begin their business venture, while receiving consultancy assistance up to favourable threshold.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Business independence is key, however, we must be realistic in that disadvantaged communities require more assistance than others and it must be provided. Finally, the expectation of young people needing to be the beacon of successful entrepreneurship must be dealt with carefully. Realistically a recent matriculate or graduate does not normally have the collateral, nor is experience to start up and run a business. However, someone between the ages of 30-40 years old has a significant advantage with both experience and better opportunities for securing further investment for their compa-

ny. As a way forward Namibia should try to increase the overall reservoir of sustainable businesses, and engage these two groups with each other in a sustainable, symbiotic relationship.

Establishing databases with descriptive profiles of students interested in work experience, collaboration or research interests could be made available to private companies or government in order for them to have direct access to currently active business minded people. Both entities must be incentivized to effectively “recycle” young local talent over long periods of time. Examples such as a point

based systems for private companies in which more points correspond to several state related benefits such as tenders and tax reductions should be considered.

In conclusion, all the suggestions made above reflect an enthusiasm towards the capacity of MSMEs in Namibia, and the potential of Namibians themselves. However, opportunities must be made available and people must feel exited and capable when investing their time, energy and money into a system that they can believe in and ensure success can happen for them and their families.

Namibia Development Trust (NDT) Champions Computer Training for Zambezi Conservancies

By M. Hitila, NDT

L

ow levels in computer literacy were identified following a conservancy needs assessment carried out by NDT in partnership with IRDNC and WWF in the Zambezi region. Nine conservancies were targeted to benefit from training aimed at improving their computer literacy skills. The funding was made available by the Morby Family Charitable Foundation in their Sustainable Communities Partnership programme through WWF-Namibia.

The conservancies targeted under the Strengthening Conservancy Governance through Enhanced Management and Leadership Project are located in the South (Balyerwa, Wuparo, Dzoti, Bamunu) and North (Kwandu, Mayuni, Mashi, Sobbe, Kyaramacan Association ) of Mudumu National Park.

The assessment also involved speaking to various other stakeholders such as the political leadership in the Zambezi region, private sector supporting conservancies and Traditional Leadership.

Following the process and validation, one of the key findings of the assessment was a lack of computer literacy amongst conservancy staff.

It is against this background that the prioritisations of computer literacy by conservancies themselves led to the Na-

mibia Development Trust looking for computer training service providers.

UNAM was ultimately selected to offer basic computer training to 32 participants, of which 5 are IRDNC Cluster Coordinators and 27 are staff members from the 9 conservancies, three of which are from each conservancy (Manager, Treasurer and Bookkeeper).

The objective of the training was that: Trainees are expected to master and demonstrate knowledge of basic computing concepts, security measures and the ability to use popular software applications to produce documents, spread sheets and presentations, creating and managing files and folders and retrieving data, files and documents The participants were divided into two groups and each group was trained for a week at the UNAM Katima Mulilo

Campus. The training started on the 2nd of October and concluded/ended on the 13th of October 2017. The first group of 17 participants attended from 2nd to 6th October 2017 and the second group of 12 participants attend from the 9th till 13th October 2017. Interestingly, 10 out of the 29 participants were women, which is a good indicator of women empowerment and upliftment in the society.

In summary, the training covered the following module: • Microsoft word • Microsoft Excel worksheet • Microsoft PowerPoint • Microsoft Publisher • Introduction to computer-definition, hardware, software, input output devices etc.

• Creating Files and manoeuvring around them • Internet Usage and emailing.

Challenges were inevitable as most participants were uneasy using a computer for the first time. Time was limited for elders who had never used a computer before as they really had a hard time catching up at first. However, with more practical exercises they proved to be able to grasp the basics concepts.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Despite the above challenges, participants demonstrated good understanding of the subject matter as they all managed to pass the test, written out of 100 marks (40% theory/ 60% practical). One participant stood out as she had been breastfeeding during all the training sessions, mostly with her baby on her back, but still remained very active and passed with flying marks of above 80%. This indeed proves that the participants were very serious about the training.

Finally, the training was conducted successfully as planned, and participants showed a lot of interest and

eagerness to learn. Considering the efforts invested by the participants, there is no doubt that they will be able to perform basic computer tasks at their conservancies.One of the observations was that participants need to keep on practicing the gained computer skills.

Unfortunately 95% of the participants have no access to computers at their offic, as there is only one or no computer at some conservancies. NDT is therefore appealing to all good Samaritans, individuals and the business community, who can assist either financially or in kind, to enable these conservancies to acquire com-

puters. We believe in the spirit of sharing, thus if these conservancies are assisted in this regard we will be able to take conservation to greater heights in Namibia, Africa and the World. In the same way, we will be able to conserve the natural beauty of Namibia.

Anyone who would like to assist these conservancies, please contact the following persons: • Ronny Dempers: ronny@ndt.org.na (061 238002/ 0811270548)/ • Aisha Nakibuule: aishalee@ndt.org.na (0812409602).

Cultivating Critical Creative Cultures: (Re)imagining Development as a process of Decoloniality Nashilongweshipwe Mushaandja

F

irstly, let us acknowledge the lack of support for creative industries and the deteriorating state of our arts pedagogy in the last 27 years resulting from the colonial days. This is attributed to things such as the mentioned history, delayed cultural policy framework and the little action when it comes to changing the status quo. Artists have been systematically marginalized and have had to operate in restricting conditions on all levels of society.

Nonetheless, cultural workers have been resilient and persevered in these conditions. Namibia has produced cultural workers of all sorts who continue to innovate and suggest the change that they want to see. This is visible in the growth that has taken place in the visual and musical arts industries.

This piece aims to highlight the importance of enabling creativity and facilitating critical dialogue in contemporary cultural production in Namibia. This is against the backdrop that cultural workers operate in restricting environments. By cultural workers, I refer to practitioners who work in creative and cultural indu-

stries particularly artists, cultural leaders and educators.

Nashilongweshipwe Mushaandja, youth artist, cultural leader, educator and activist This article suggests that development is empty and fundamentally inadequate if it does not aim to dismantle the existing power hierarchies and focus on redistribution. As young people, we need to think critically and creatively about how to empower ourselves and how to share that power. We need to look at the poverty and subjugation of the youth as being connected to other inequalities such as capitalism and patriarchy.

This year, the John Muafangejo Art Centre has been posing a fundamental question, whose role is it to educate the public about art? This stems from a needs study in the visual arts sector conducted in 2016. Public education of arts and culture was identified as a crucial factor in the development of cultural and creative industries.

In answering this question, we situated culture at the centre of each development process as cultural theorists Ngugi wa Thiong’o and Zakes Mda have suggested in their discourse.

There has to be a process of unlearning colonial understandings of arts and culture, while constructing meaningful and holistic approaches of cultural production.

This is to say that there is a lot that can be learned from our indigenous practices with regards to reinventing contemporary cultural production in Namibia, in an economic sense. This includes a culture of criticality. Criticizing capitalism and neo-colonialism. Given the socio-economic reality of Namibia, we will need to cultivate and promote a critical mass which is currently missing from the way cultural production is taught and historicized in Namibia. Our futures depend on how we criticize and dismantle the current capitalist system which is largely responsible for poverty and youth unemployment.

Ownership is the first thing that comes to mind when I think about the making of critical creative cultures.

Namibian youth must understand that being owners of cultural production is what will contribute GO TO PAGE 15

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

to their emancipation. National documents such as The Harambee Prosperity Plan and the National Development Plan 5 are not enough to take us where we would like to go. They lack a rigorous understanding of culture and how it can be used to fight systemic oppression.

We will have to actively embody the cultural meanings of these plans, which are not defined in these documents. For example, have we ever asked what the cultural meaning of Harambee is? What does it look and feel like in practice? It is about each young cultural worker taking responsibility to lead their own change process by creating a culture that demonstrates progress, transparency and accountability. Here, action is in form of praxis meaning that the theory meets the practice. Ownership therefore means generating voice, access and finding agency when it comes to confronting socio-economic barriers to youth development. We have seen this taking form in the last three decades when more artists started making their own spaces and shaping their own praxis in environments of structural inequalities and anti-artist in principle.

Collaboration is the other significant factor that we will have to work on in the making of progressive cultural sectors in our country. Young people are however aware of the fact that we

work in isolation and that this is part of our collective culture that needs to change. Our collective consciousness depends on how well we can share resources in order to experience the value chain in cultural production. Much of this culture of working in silos has been inherited from colonial cultures which have always taught us to thrive alone in the best capitalist fashion. We must promote the making of communities of practicing collaboration focused on enhancing grassroots communities and future generations.

Collaborative efforts must also happen beyond the borders of arts and culture practices. Cross-disciplinary work is vital as it enhances inter-professional knowledge between parties and unearths new possibilities. The advantage of arts and culture is that they work well and are applicable to every other sector in one way or the other. What is an organization or industry without culture? My independent research in industrial and applied arts has substantiated that local artists continue to apply their skills to contexts outside of the arts and culture fraternities. A lot of entrepreneurial communities have emerged.

Collaboration is however not an easy process and this is where critical engagement must come in. Cultural workers must continue to critically engage with their clients and strategic partners and vice versa. There is a lot

that can be learned from this interaction. We find that other industries often have a lot to learn from arts and culture.

Much of the development discourse has not touched on the importance of love and care for the self and others.

Can we truly develop our contexts without considering questions of love and care in our businesses? I ask this question because it is fundamental in the work cultural production. Passion for the arts is what gets many artists through difficult conditions. The level of corruption and violence experienced in the Namibian society today must also be understood as a clear lack of love and care from leadership ranks of society.

Because I am a scholar of the decolonization school of thought, I am going to suggest that the change must be radical. The work of decolonizing ourselves and spaces is often left for civil societies and academia but it must be heightened beyond these activist spaces. It must be extended into entrepreneurial, government and other decision making spaces because these are the spaces where power is also abused and unchallenged. It is all about enabling mindful creative decision making that has the greater society’s interests at heart. The work of cultivating critical creative communities is everyone’s business because we are all cultural citizens at the end of the day.

The Current Status of Green Economic Development in Namibia:

The Benefits of a Green Economy and Alternative Energy Sector on Upskilling Young Entrepreneurs and the Unemployed Youth Claudia Gossow

W

ith a drop in Namibia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 5.3% in 2015 to an estimated 1.3% in 2016 , and with over 43.4% unemployed youths in the country as of 2017 , the inclusion of youth, particularly young entrepreneurs in Namibia’s development

agendas to drive employment and entrepreneurial initiatives is not surprising.

Driven by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the National Development Plan (NDP5), Vision 2030 and the Harambee Prosperity Plan are among the agendas that place tremendous emphasis on the upskilling of local youth, especially

the expansion of entrepreneurial development, to achieve economic growth that is inclusive, sustainable and equitable.

The economic model to date, however, remains inefficient when it comes to promoting environmental sustainability and job creation.

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16 Green sustainable economic growth in Namibia, a topic that is rather poorly defined, and its benefits on local enterprise development, employment generation and the expansion of local entrepreneurial initiatives is therefore necessary, as envisioned in the pillars of the above agendas.

Rural communities, in particular entrepreneurs and the youth, responsible for future sustainability are in desperate need of skills, consistent electricity supply among other services, and a healthy natural environment necessary for the enhancement of social inclusion and an improvement of their wellbeing .

In order to address the issues of poverty and unemployment, local authorities should focus on promoting green economic development in Namibia, ‘to improve and create a harmonious balance between the wellbeing of our people and the imperative of industrialisation, job creation, the utilisation of our natural resources for the benefit of our people and the need to ensure sustainability and environmental conservation’ .

Imports and exports contribute toward 100% of GDP therefore special focus should be placed on generating employment in the agriculture, fishing, trade and mining sectors, Namibia’s largest GDP contributors . Too often significance of potential job creation opportunities in the recycling, community-based (eco) tourism, biotrade and green construction sectors are overlooked.

These sectors face challenges such as weakened entrepreneurial activities due to limited access to credit and banking services , and other internal and external country-specific obstacles .

The supply of remote off-grid alternative/renewable electricity and alternative waste management solutions including recycling should form part of the national development agendas’ focus.

Tourism, in addition to the other major economic drivers mentioned, play a fundamental role in stabilising the local economy.

Over 24 000 jobs were generated in 2013 , this figure has grown to 102 500

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD jobs to date and over 83 registered communal conservancies, benefitting roughly 250 000 rural Namibians .

The progress of eco-tourism and how this sector has contributed towards local job creation, including the upskilling of local youth and entrepreneurs should be noted. After all eco-tourism is said to sustain the wellbeing of local communities .

Claudia Gossow is an ambassador for the leadership of Sustainable Development Goals domestication, practicing as both a freelance and executive psychological research consultant since 2014.

She holds a Masters degree in Psychology - specialisation in Research Consultation A need also exists to nationally empower green economic development in protected areas, which support industries and services such as the tourism and hospitality sectors. As displayed in figure 1 below, a vast number of certified sustainable tourism establishments and operators already exist in Namibia .

Skills training initiatives such as those funded by the non-government organisations (NGO), for e.g The Amarula Trust, have the potential to boost ecotourism in Southern Africa and essentially combat unemployment, enhance the skills set of entrepreneurs, resulting in increased entrepreneurial activities that the economy so desperately requires at this stage.

The current demands of field guiding as a career has exposed a number of Namibian youth to eco-tourism through this project.

Employing entry level personnel as tour guides have also resulted in increased vacancies on game lodges and

private reserves generating a need to upskill the local inhabitants .

Growing waste accompanied by an ever-growing population are just one of the challenges that effective waste management faces. Ineffective waste management often leads to health risks and an increased crime rate, just some elements highlighting the importance of proper waste management.

Despite government’s emphasis on the promotion of recycling, local authorities are still held accountable with implementing the various projects, as pointed out by the Recycle Namibia Forum (NRF).

Although signs of growing interest by local companies to join recycling initiatives are evident, the RNF encourage the community at large to join in on such efforts.

An initiative by Rent-A-Drum, in collaboration with the Windhoek Municipality and Enviro-Fill, offering a weekly supply of clear plastic bags to local households in selected suburbs to dispose of recyclable rubbish, collected simultaneously to regular waste, has resulted in the establishment of the Material Recovery Facility (MRF). The MRF generates work for over 50 employees and are responsible for sorting large volumes of mixed recyclables .

Despite the challenge of transporting recyclables to collection centres at a low cost, similar projects are on the rise, including the Omaruru Grow Namibia project, and the School Recycling Competition sponsored by the RNF. It is evident that communities, in particular the unemployed, are utilising these opportunities to earn an income through sorting and collecting recyclable waste, while significantly contributing toward alternative waste management .

The green construction and bio-trade sectors are sustainable practices, also worthy of future emphasis and discussion.

To date, the lack of access to energy constitutes a major barrier to poverty alleviation and industrialisation as nearly 75% of rural households still remain without electricity .

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Accommodation Establisher Tour operator

Figure 1 - Certified sustainable tourism establishments and operators in Namibia In terms of contributions from the agendas, the Harambee Prosperity Plan aims to increase the provision of rural electrification by 50%, turning to renewable energy in the form of photovoltaic (solar) cells, the most economic solution , whilst Government remains concerned with electrifying local schools and government institutions .

Despite a lack of support, poor management and the marginal business risks , challenges derived from the vastness of the country and its miniscule power sector , local entrepreneurs in collaboration with the youth, various non-government organisations, including the Habitat Research and Development Centre (HRDC), and Hanns-Seidel Foundation (HSF) continue to strive toward expanding local industry and the implementation of alternative energy solutions and climate change awareness.

A call for an inclusive green economy is noteworthy considering Nami-

bia’s high youth unemployment rate, entrepreneurial challenges , energy supply crisis and environmental challenges, associated with droughts, declining natural ecosystems, and water shortages .

Partnerships and dialogues by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET), Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the Federal Ministry for Economic Corporation and Development (BMZ) and other Namibian partners have shaped, what is termed the first national multi stakeholder dialogue, to explore how a transition to a Green Economy would benefit all Namibians .

Whilst progress is visible in terms of community-based natural resources management and eco-tourism, Namibia is still in the early stages of aligning her development path regarding green decisions in the energy, transport and various industrial sectors, including sustainable waste ma-

nagement and the upskilling of entrepreneurs and youth. As highlighted, “People have understood that nature and biodiversity are economic resources .”

It is up to all Namibians, especially actors from government, trade unions, employers, civil society, and our youth to increase awareness on climate change and fuel green sustainable development in order to transform the Namibian economy and create a better, more sustainable healthy future for all.

Doreen Sioka ‘The green economy is an area where future economic growth and employment creation are possible as far as Namibia is concerned’

18

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Youth Project

Interning with the NDT through the Conservation Leadership Program of NACSO Mekondjo Hitila

N

DT’s work is aimed at empowering the rural youth as a collective and as individuals, to take charge of their destiny. Empowerment is aimed at harnessing the power that already resides in every individual.

It is about engaging individuals as a collective to realise that the first step towards development is them taking the initiative to do something about their situation. The work with the Uuvudhiya Youth Form has been one of many examples.

Youth Forum micro drip irrigation garden

The business is located in the landscape called Iipumbu-ya-Tshilongo Conservancy, located in the northern part of Namibia. The landscape lies within the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin, stretching over two regional administrative boundaries (Oshana and Omusati Regions), and its southern boundary, which borders the Etosha National Park. The business was made possible through funding from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Small Grants Namibia.

The Uuvudhiya Agricultural Youth Project is an Agriculture Youth development fully owned and administered by the Youth of Uuvudhiya Constituency Youth Forum. The Project is situated in Oluthalwegolo Village, at the southern West part of Uuvudhiya Constituency. The total land cover of the project is about 40 hectors and there is a nearby natural river. About 2.5 hectors of land is currently fenced off. The team of youth full members were trained by NDT to ensure good results from the project.

In general, the project intends to increase agricultural productivity in the constituency, create jobs and alleviate poverty among youth through climate smart initiatives such as the micro drip irrigation systems. The project also allows a platform where youth in

the constituency secure enough food and addresses the high and alarming unemployment rates especially in the rural constituencies.

Mekondjo Hitila, is an Intern with NDT through the Conservation Leadership Programme internship Program of Nacso The project vision is to strengthen the youth in the constituency who are vulnerable and poor, specifically focusing on social and skill development with sustainable food production projects.

This includes food and nutrition security and sustainable entrepreneurship.

Moreover, the project built a strong support base to make the youth forum more self-sustaining and help them to participate in local decision making processes with reference to natural resource conservation and other social issues.

The project entails the setting up of a poultry farm, aquaculture system as well as a garden to grow vegetables in order to increase food security and generate income among the youth of Uuvudhiya constituency. However, the poultry farm and aquaculture system has not taken off thus far but the garden that consisted of a drip irrigation system was successfully implemented.

The project aims were to address the following key areas;

• The high rate of unemployment and food insecurity • The increased demand for fresh vegetables and poultry products (meat and eggs) • The lack of fertile and arable land • The low consumption of vegetables

In addition to the above key areas, the specific results or outcomes of the project are as follow:

The vegetable garden plans to increase the Climate Change resilience of the communities in the constituency area.

These Communities have very little knowledge about climate change and alternative livelihoods and this project aims to build this knowledge. Knowing that water is an important yet very scarce resource in the conservancy areas, drip irrigation provides security that the youth and community can feed themselves, as the system used saves water.

• The project also capacitates unemployed youth in terms of skill development as they have been provided with the necessary training on vegetables production, aquaculture and poultry farming. These alone strive to encourage and gain the interest from many unemployed youth to participate in agricultural production and poultry.

• The project also aims to enhance food security and become self-sufficient.

From the onset, the main focus was to get the beneficiaries involved in all the aspects of setting up, installing, implementing, maintaining, harvesting, marketing and self-sufficient entrepreneurship’. Also, skills, knowledge and practical experience are transferred with the aim to ensure sustainability. The project, as part of its long term success strategy, will be available as a support entity for reference and advice, to ensure sustainability.

What has been the success story so far?

The youth managed to make an agreement with local Oshakati Spar and Ongwediva Spar were they took their produces for sale.

This ensures that the youth can gain regular income from their produce.

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Therefore, through this project the youth have been able to earn income which produces a surplus for their consumption.

In addition, the youth were also strongly empowered with new skills that can enable them to venture in modern business. Currently the project benefits 12 youth but the aim is

to implement similar initiatives in the Uvudhiya Constituency to create more employment opportunities for the rural youth.

“The work by NDT clearly demonstrate our efforts and theory of change that is for an empowered society, particularly the youth, a generation

Uuvudhiya Youth Forum micro drip irrigation garden

that matters most” and that there is no doubt that this work by NDT is in line and respond to the national development plans of Namibia both the National Development Plan 5 (NDP5), Vision 2030, Harambee Prosperity Plan (HPP) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s).

Uuvudhiya Youth Forum during the training

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MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Invest in Implementers

Where we are and Where we want to be Michael Hasheela

T

here is a strange phenomenon taking place in Namibia today.

The country seems to consistently craft ‘good’ policies, i.e. Vision 2030, the National Development Plans (NDPs), and most recently the Harambee Prosperity Plan (HPP), yet everything seems to stay the same, and in some cases regress. While these policies genuinely embody the major issues that arise in connection with Namibia’s development, there is no internal discernable pattern as to how they will be realized. The processes of policy formulation and policy execution have not yet developed a rhythm and the lines of a progressive political culture have yet to emerge.

Moreover, the deficiencies of a oneparty-dominated state have not yet generated coherent social forces capable of developing and maintaining a sustainable effective opposition.

This contribution seeks to explore the question of ‘where we want to be and how we can get there.’ It argues

that government is the primary custodian of national development, and as such, it is imperative for it to mandate all stakeholders with a genuine and unambiguous role in that process. Additionally, it argues that there is a strong need for government to recognize that development and economic matters require internal skilled specialists and technocrats.

Progress Report: 1990 to Present

After a bloody and protracted liberation struggle – and with significant influence from the international community – Namibia declared its independence on 21 March 1990.

This makes Namibia one the youngest independent states in Africa, numbering fourth only after South Sudan (2011), South Africa (1994), and Eritrea (1993).

In spite of its relatively meager age however, Namibia’s political, economic and social indicators have solidly placed her in the pack of upper middle income developing countries.

Amongst others, this standing culmi-

nates from a combination of factors, which includes - the absence of postindependence civil unrest, inherited infrastructure from its colonial past, and a somewhat steady or iron political leadership under the Founding Father, Dr Sam Nujoma.

Indeed, while the inherited infrastructure –harbors, electric grids, road systems, storage dams etc.… laid the foundation for the provision of immediate public and private services in an independent Namibia, the combination of socio-political stability and ‘strong’ leadership enabled the crafting, and to a certain extent, the execution of national development oriented policies.

In the subsequent years, Namibia continued to sustain economic growth at an average of 4.5% a year, well above the average experienced by other upper-middle-income countries in Africa (2.8%), and nearly a percentage point higher than the continental average (3.7%).

GO TO PAGE 21

Gross Domestic Product (Percentage Growth) 14.0 12.0 10.0 8.0 6.0 4.0 2.0 0.0 -2.0 -4.0

90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

Real GDP

Growth Target

Source: Economic Association of Namibian, 2017 Figure 1: Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) vs. Target GDP for Vision 2030

21

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

In Spite of this notable record however, it can prove to be misleading when taken at face value, and more so when assessed through the targets articulated in the national development policy documents as figure 1 indicates.

Figure 1 indicates the performance of the Namibian economy between 1990 and 2016 in relation to the set objective of becoming a developed country by the year 2030. Since the inception of Vision 2030, there has been consensus amongst policy makers, economists and academics that the economy would have to grow at an average of 7% per annum to meet its targets.

As data shows however, Namibia has only achieve growth of 7% or greater in four sporadic years since independence – 1991 (8.2%), 1992 (7.2%), 2004 (12.3%), 2006 (7.1%) - and never since NDP3, the first of the NDPs to be formulated within the context of Vision 2030. Thus, although Namibia has been performing better than other African states, it has not been meeting its economic growth objectives.

Furthermore, Namibia is generally positively revered in terms of governance when likened to its African counterparts and other upper-middle-income countries. For instance, out of 51 upper-middle-income coun-

tries, Namibia was ranked 18th on the World Bank’s Government Effectiveness measure in 2014. According to the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) however, this relatively positive placing masks a deeper trend in governance in Namibia: “its position has been declining over time against other upper-middle-income countries.“ Indeed, while Namibia ranked 5th on the World Bank’s Government effectiveness measure in 1996, it dropped to the 18th most effective government in 2014. Furthermore, Namibia has also declined twelve spots (from 12th to 24th) on the World Bank’s Regulatory Quality index, and by five places (from 3rd to 8th) on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index. The graph below indicates the activity of Parliament between 1990 and 2014.

As the graph illustrates, Parliament was most busy after independence, passing more than 30 laws a year between 1990 and 1994. This can be attributed to the fact that the country just received its independence and many laws, most of which formed the legal infrastructure of the apartheid system, needed appealing. Over the next two Parliaments (from 1995-1999 and 2000-2005) output dropped margi-

nally, but the productivity of Parliament dropped significantly for the 4th and 5th Parliaments.

Apart from the Parliaments activity, the most recent figures from the Namibia Labour Force Survey report indicate that unemployment has increased from 28% in 2014 to an estimated 34% in 2016. Although the increase can in part be attributed to the end of the construction boom, budget cuts and a significant drought in the country, it is worth noting that Namibia has not been able to move away from double-digit unemployment rates as the graph shows below (no data was obtain for the year 2015 as no Labour Force Survey was conducted).

Correspondingly, in 2016 Namibia also saw a number of strikes and protects over issues such as land and urban housing, poor service delivery, high tuition fees, as well as union activity demanding better work conditions and high wages.

While these trends appear to be different in character, they are all united in nature by a common denominator, namely a systemic deficiency of strategic cooperation between stakeholders and the scarcity of capacity to coordinate such an effort.

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Average Number of Laws Passed Per Year

35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 1st Parliament

2nd Parliament

3rd Parliament

4th Parliament

5th Parliament

(1990-1994)

(1995-1999)

(2000-1999)

(2005-2009)

(2010-2014)

Source: Institute for Public Policy Research, 2017

22

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD development policies - Vision 2030, NDPs, and HPP - envisages.

Michael Hasheela, hold a bachelors degree in International Relations from Vesalius College in Brussels and is currently pursing a masters degree in European and International studies in Germany. He has worked for the Institute for the Public Policy Research and the Hanns Seidel Foundation

On the way forward:

Put another way, Namibia’s political administrative machinery, which is responsible for implementing government policies and ensuring quality service delivery, has increasingly become unmotivated, poorly managed and knowledge stripped to take Namibia from where it is today to where its

In addressing the issues and trends outlined in this contribution, Namibia needs a new way of thinking and a paradigm shift in how it confronts the issue of policy implementation; simply saying “we have good policies, but the problem is no implementation” is not enough.

Why is implementation a problem?

What are the impediments, and how can they be overcome?

In conclusion, it is apparent that policies are often rolled out in Namibia but most of the time, without achieving the desired results.

Indeed, for any government to be judged to be administratively competent, there must be evidence of bridging the gap between the intention of a policy and the actual achievement of the policy. Thus, towards reversing the trends setout here, the following actions are recommended to government:

a) Identify and mandate all stakeholders (public, private, civil society, academia, media and private citizens) with a genuine and unambiguous role in national development; provide incentives where necessary. E.g. incentivize the private sector to clampdown on unemployment through tax breaks/cuts etc.; b) Foster cooperation between stakeholders and firmly coordinate such efforts. E.g. foundational cooperation between industrial planners and financial specialists to assess costs, inflation and the burden of debt; c) Develop a framework that is strict and punitive on maladministration and misconduct, namely corruption/bureaucratic capitalism and inefficiency; d) Through the Namibia Students Financial Assistance Fund (NSFAF) (and ministerial scholarship/grand programs), strategically invests in able young people to become government technocrats to help guide national development and to gradually increase government competitiveness.

Unemployment Rate in Namibia (2011 - 2016) 50 45

Percentage (%)

40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

2011

2012

2013

2014

Total Employment

37

27.4

29.6

28.1

34

Youth Unemploymet

39

37.8

42.2

39.2

43.3

Source: Namibia Statistic Agency, 2017

2015

2016

23

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

Namibia Media Holdings

A company serious about youth development in Namibia Helené Bam

N

amibia Media Holdings (NMH) prides itself in its practical and broad involvement in youth development. NMH not only believes the youth is the future, but also demonstrates it through its practical involvement and through investing its time and resource in various projects aimed at empowering the youth through skills development and work experience.

By means of the school newspaper development project, media camps, internship opportunities, bursaries, Hashtag Festival and Career Fair, the specialised and focused weekly youth publication called The Zone, the Career Magazine, and the dedicated youth user generated content published in our publications, NMH surely walks the talk.

School newspaper development project As Namibia Media Holdings prioritises the development of the youth, NMH launched a project in 2015 where selected high schools are given the opportunity to publish their own school newspaper. The project aims to educate and equip a new generation of newspaper and media readers.

The project began with 8 schools in

the Khomas region and during 2015, 24 school newspapers were published and distributed to schools in the region. In 2016 the project has expanded and boasted 20 participating schools in the central region (Windhoek, Rehoboth, Gobabis and Okahandja) and eight schools in the Erongo Region, publishing and distributing 32 and 16 school newspapers respectively.

The objectives of the project are to: - Create a generation that understands the importance of a free, fair and independent media industry; - Invest in a generation that does not only have access to information but understands why access to information is important and the responsibility that comes with ‘knowing’; - Establish a platform where the youth – and marginalised youth – of Namibia can make their voice heard; and - Develop the industry and life skills in participating students.

The project expanded to the North in 2017 with participating schools in Tsumeb, Otjiwarongo, Ongwediva and Rundu.

The editorial teams (10 to 15 learners per school) as well as the school design team (5 learners) receive training at the NMH Media Academy or at their schools prior to the commence-

Helené Bam, youth editor at Namibia Media Holdings

ment of their first edition.

More than 600 learners are part of this project and more than 10 000 learners are reached by receiving the school newspapers.

Basic journalism principles and the use of industry software (Adobe and InDesign) form the basis of equipping the learners to publish a school newspaper. The training consists of a 2-day session hosted by Willie Olivier, a veteran journalist as well as Alexander Fase - Production and Design Director at NMH. Helené Bam, NMH Youth Coordinator, overseas the entire project.

As project leader, Helené meets with the editorial team from each participating school to discuss content and layout. Practical application by the learners along with some guidance, has proven to be successful.

The programme includes training sessions that focuses on photojournalism, multi-media journalism, social media and copy editing. Furthermore, this project encourages and promotes team work, leadership skills, analytical and independent thinking, clear writing, sensitivity to deadlines and hands-on experience.

Comments from numerous learners and coordinating teachers affirm that this project en- GO TO PAGE 24

24

MOVING NAMIBIA’S YOUTH FORWARD

courages leadership development, responsibility, and entrepreneurial skills, and has created a love for print and digital media.

Media Camps More than 180 high school learners that are part of the School Newspaper Development Project in Khomas, Hardap, Omakehe, Otjozondjupa and Erongo have attended NMH media camps in 2016.

• 1st Media Camp: 24th – 26th of June.

• 2nd Media Camp: 1st – 3rd of July.

• 3rd Media Camp: 21st – 24th of August.

The media camps aim to educate high school students on ethical journalism, teach them about the do’s and don’ts of the profession as well as give them the platform to practice their writing and photography skills.

The goals of the camp are to give the learners media training that will equip them with vital skills and open doors to a future in the media and related industries. They also receive continuous feedback on their work throughout the camp. They get the opportunity to meet the editors of

Namibian Sun, Windhoek Express, Republikein and Allgemeine Zeitung and engage with them in round table discussions.

News values, the future of the Namibian media industry, the importance of social media and the evolution of media in the digital age are just some of the topics that are discussed at the workshops they attend.

Workshops are fun and informative and the participants have the opportunity to produce their own multimedia videos at the camp.

Although the students work very hard during the camp there is also time for fun. Students get the chance to play skittles, make their own fires for the evening braai, attend a gala dinner and go on a night walk.

Expo Times During the 2016 Namibia Tourism Expo and Motor Show, the balcony level of the Presidents Hall was occupied by 20 learners (Grade 10 11’s) from various participating schools to showcase their school newspapers to the exhibitors and Expo visitors.

The students interacted and interviewed exhibitors at their discretion and produced the Expo Times. Five thousand copies were distributed by

the learners at the Expo.

The Namibia Tourism Expo again experienced another youth invasion when 20 media and communications students from Unam and Nust assisted moved into the Balcony Level of the Boabab Hall to compile the Expo Times as part of their practical work experience. The write stories, took photos produced videos and helped manage our social media platforms during the course of the expo.

Internship opportunities

As an extension of the school newspaper development project, learners who formed part of their schools editorial teams have to opportunity to work at NMH as paid interns for a year at Namibian Sun, Republikein and Allgemeine Zeitung.

Interns work alongside the editorial teams of the respective publications and gain valuable industry related experience. The internship programme focuses on the holistic development of young journalist. All interns also have to complete a certificate in practical journalism though our in-house Namibia Media Academy and also have to write book and films reviews related to the media industry.

Imprint Layout and Design: Gabriela Dawids Oskar Oskar Marketing: Carolin Guriras Project Advisory: Emily Kandanga Dr. Clemens von Doderer

Printed by

This publication is produced, published and distributed as a free supplement in the publications of Namibia Media Holdings (Pty) Ltd. Publication date: 08 December 2017