February 2020 updates from projects in Namibia

Helao Nafidi:  Incremental development to cater for everyone-from informal settlement upgrading to green fields. 

Hans Shifeni from 17^th Location in Nelao Nafidi shared that 17^th location is looking so beautiful with  open streets. We have done the servicing of the water.  We relocated other people to other land with street and they have water and they started to apply for water meters. We are busy planning greenfields for the plots that are in the water.  I also live in a Greenfields plot and we already built our houses.  We are busy to mobilize the groups that are willing to build their houses. Now the people of 17 location can build,  they could not build houses before but first had to upgrade.  They like the houses we built and want also to start building.  We built 49 houses in Helao Nafidi. We built 9 houses last years - and the previous year 30 and the year before 10.

Five Water meters connected at Usab Informal Settlement in Karibib.   

 For NHAG and SDFN this is another milestone of how far the community has moved in this town.    The water pipe installation started in July 2020 and reach completion recently. The groups are currently planning their next activities namely to replace the bulk sewer pipe with a bigger (from 110mm to 160 mm) pipe.  

 Ernestine Garoes (committee member installed with the support of the municipality a water meter on Saturday- 20 February 2021) shared her experience.  I am really very happy - the water was very far and I needed to pay for somebody to fetch it.  We had to pay NAD 1,940 for the meter – payable within three months but at the community meeting, community requested Town Council to grant the paying for water meters up to six months.  We’ve put the pipes in the street – and yesterday we put the small pipe to my yard with the water meter.  We started in July 2020 with the water pipe excavations and I really believed this is going to happen that we will get water and we as community worked very hard to get it.  The whole community excavated and helped.  We had lots of meeting.   First every household paid N$ 225 to pay a land surveyor. I lived here since 2012 and when the land measurer came, as we did not know the corners of our plots meter – I had to move my shack without complaining as I am having my own erf.   I was also there when we did our layouts.   We are going to work on the sewer and had meetings in smaller blocks to plan for the sewer.  We shared with the community to leave 3 meters behind the shacks - to make place for the sewer pipes.  I can also start to make my bricks now that I have water to prepare for the building of my house.

 

Nutrition as part of Covid-19 activities.

The nutritional and environmental aspects were also addressed at the same time when preparing the food.  It was very heartening to share a plate of food with the community which was totally produced in Namibia.   The vegetables from the community gardens and running chicken came from Windhoek and with the healthy option of Mahangu (millet) porridge from the north, we are definitely boosting our immune systems, as well as become less reliant of imported food.     

 Ituyeni Saving Group in Windhoek has overcome many Beurocratic stumble blocks the past 15 years, put demonstrated a tenacity and negotiation power that can be a lesson to all of us. 

Their land was taken off because of arrears, and information not reaching the community;  the city then took the approach,  was that all the shared plots have to be subdivided to individual ownership (which means 3 meter panhandles that cannot be shared by the saving group, therefore the city took it upon themselves to re-design to accommodate the access roads.  Once this measuring of plots were completed the community took the initiative to prepare for house construction by making their own hollow blocks.  Thereafter the plans could not be approved as the sewers were not installed, although the community already started making blocks.  No mid-block sewers could be installed, as the building areas left over after the 3 meter panhandles were measure out was too small to enable the sewer to go between the houses.   This was followed with long delays for the municipality to install the sewers.  Further delays came from the approval of plans, but recently some members got approved land  and happy is the day that the survey of the houses have started on the 21^st of February 2021.