Africa-Press – Namibia. The Groot Aub settlement, which is located about 60 kilometres south of Windhoek, wants to be returned to the administrative control of the Khomas Regional Council (KRC) for more efficient service delivery.
This position was expressed by Windhoek Rural constituency councillor Piet Adams, who was elected a little over four years ago.
Speaking to New Era from his constituency office as part of pre-election coverage, Adams reflected on his term, marked by what he called visible but limited progress largely constrained by deliberate central government inertia and poor coordination with the City of Windhoek (CoW).
As Namibia edges towards the 2025 Regional Councils and Local Authorities’ elections, this publication visited the Windhoek Rural constituency to assess the progress made by elected leaders.
The goal was to weigh the promises made by councillors when canvassing for votes over four years ago, against what they have delivered.
The focus turned to the Landless People’s Movement (LPM) councillor, who took office with a strong mandate to deliver basic services and advocate for equitable land distribution.
When Adams was elected regional councillor for Windhoek Rural in the 2020 elections, the victory was more than symbolic.
The Windhoek Rural constituency is not like most administrative bodies. It surrounds the capital, but falls outside the CoW’s municipal boundaries, with the exception of Groot Aub, which was incorporated into the City administration just before the 2020 elections.
“The Ministry of Urban and Rural Development and the CoW are sitting on land that should be handed over to the constituency for development, but they won’t release it. It’s difficult to bring services to people when you don’t control the land they live on,” he stated.
The councillor said in areas like Dordabis and Mix settlement, residents continue to face major challenges: poor access to clean water, absence of proper sanitation facilities and limited housing.
He added that residents of Groot Aub, which was once a rural village, feel abandoned since the City took over the area.
Basic services like refuse collection, street maintenance and housing allocations have either stalled or disappeared entirely.
“We had a localised approach when the village was under the Regional Council. Now, things have regressed.
There’s no development plan. While the City absorbed Groot Aub, there’s nothing on paper to show how they plan to develop it,” he revealed.
For many of the residents scattered across Groot Aub, Dordabis, Mix settlement and other remote areas, his win represented a break from the status quo, a chance to reclaim dignity, access to land and long-overdue basic services.
Certain quarters opine that the question facing voters in the Windhoek Rural constituency now is not just whether promises were fulfilled, but whether progress, no matter how small, was possible under a system seemingly designed to fail those who dare to challenge it.
Now, with less than five months to the next regional and local authorities’ elections, Adams finds himself in a complicated position, between the weight of expectations and the harsh realities of politics and regional governance.
Challenges
The constituency has made visible progress, but challenges still remain. Chief among them are the administrative clashes with the CoW, unresolved land formalisation issues, and limited resources for road maintenance and electricity access.
“The current set-up is not ideal. Unless there’s a change in how responsibilities are shared between the regional and local authorities, the next councillor will face the same struggles,” Adams said, calling on the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development to relook constituency boundaries and administrative handovers.
Solution
To prevent the same development challenges recurring in the Windhoek Rural constituency, the next councillor must prioritise clarifying and streamlining jurisdictional responsibilities between the regional council and the CoW.
Adams highlighted that “the dilemma we found ourselves in stems from two overlapping responsibilities, one held by the regional council and the other by the CoW”.
He continued: “This disconnect, especially in areas like Groot Aub and Mix settlement, has delayed development and created unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles.” “The ideal position I foresee is for Groot Aub to be given to the KRC to administer instead of the local authority”, he suggested, arguing that the CoW is overwhelmed and unable to service distant areas effectively. Secondly, he said the next councillor must establish binding cooperation mechanisms with the local authority.
Adams expressed deep frustration: “I’ve been struggling for almost three, four weeks now to bring the CoW to at least come grade this road.” He noted that development stalls when there are 15 councillors from the local authority and one councillor who is now responsible for the constituency, yet there’s no enforced collaboration.
A practical solution would be to propose a standing joint coordination committee between the KRC and the CoW to align priorities, share responsibilities and accelerate the implementation of projects, especially in grey zones like Groot Aub and the Mix settlement.
Ambitions
Upon election, the councillor pledged to prioritise land redistribution and improve access to clean water, electricity, housing and better healthcare.
The name of his party – Landless People’s Movement – already sets the tone for what the people expected: land reform and improved living conditions.
However, reality quickly proved more complex. The constituency, one of the largest in the Khomas region, stretches across borders with the Hardap, Omaheke, Otjozondjupa and Erongo regions. Many areas lie outside the CoW’s direct control, making service delivery a complicated matter of overlapping responsibilities between the CoW and the KRC.
“We came into office with the people’s mandate and a clear plan, but we’ve been fighting systems which were never designed to accommodate or support us,” Adams stressed.
Water
Water supply has been one of the councillor’s biggest successes. Through water intervention programmes such as drilling boreholes and installing tanks, the constituency has reached many residents in need. He proudly noted that areas like Dordabis now enjoy restored water services, following past disruptions and community protests.
Development delayed
Adams revealed that his office has written numerous letters to both the city council and central government ministries, requesting formal partnerships, joint planning sessions and land transfers, often with little to no response.
“There’s no communication. It’s like we’re running a parallel government. They don’t consult us, yet we’re the ones closest to the people,” he lamented.
He pointed to several projects which have been delayed due to land ownership issues, or lack of cooperation. These include sanitation upgrades in Dordabis, housing developments in Mix settlement, and the establishment of mobile clinics and police outposts in underserved areas.
Progress
Despite the setbacks, Adams insists his office has made modest progress. Through collaboration with NGOs and private donors, several boreholes in remote farming communities were rehabilitated. Food relief and assistance with school uniforms were likewise offered to vulnerable families during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
His office also facilitated applications for social grants, and documentation drives for vulnerable residents without national identity documents. One notable project was the identification and registration of the elderly and orphans for monthly grants, which many had not accessed before due to bureaucratic barriers.
“It’s not enough; I know that. But we worked with the little we had. No budget, no real autonomy, yet we tried to deliver,” he stated.
Land
Despite the party’s core mission to address land issues, progress in this area has been slow. Settlements such as Mix and Groot Aub still face delays in formalisation, a prerequisite for infrastructural development. The councillor pointed to the inefficiency and lack of cooperation from the CoW as major obstacles.
“We are unable to bring electricity to some areas because we must first seek permission from the CoW, which delays everything.
We are still struggling to get the City to grade the damaged gravel roads after the rainy season,” said the councillor.
This has led to the suggestion that Groot Aub should be returned to the administrative control of the KRC for more efficient service delivery. At the heart of Windhoek Rural’s development woes lies the unresolved land question.
Adams accused central government of holding onto land around the capital, and withholding it from development to undermine opposition-led constituencies.
“They fear that if we succeed, it will set an example. So, they keep us stuck. But we are not blind; the people are watching,” he said.
He also believes the current governance system needs urgent reform, as the division of powers between local authorities, regional councils and line ministries creates unnecessary duplication and hampers service delivery.
“We must move towards an integrated governance system which puts people first, not politics or turf wars,” he continued.
Sanitation
Sanitation programmes have brought tangible results. Between 2021 and 2024, the constituency rolled out more than 350 dry toilets across settlements, including Dordabis, Hataamas, Obdam and Groot Aub. Just last year, 194 toilets were installed for N$2.9 million. Efforts are now being made to convert some of these into flush toilets, starting with a pilot project in Frederik Samstead.
A mobile clinic was set up in the Mix settlement at a cost of N$550 000, and an ambulance was procured to serve the region, although it is shared with other constituencies.
Infrastructural and educational support projects are also taking shape across the constituency through minor capital works. These include the upgrading of the Horizone Sports Field, which is currently 65% complete, as well as the renovation of classrooms and school facilities at Nikolaus Witbooi Primary School.
Additionally, police holding cells in Dordabis and the C.A.S. post are being refurbished, while efforts to improve school infrastructure continue in collaboration with the Ministry of Education.
Understanding the socio-economic challenges of rural life, the councillor introduced a social safety net programme, including a winter blanket drive. Vulnerable residents, including pupils from rural schools and the elderly, receive assistance annually.
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