{"id":41272,"date":"2023-03-15T18:40:26","date_gmt":"2023-03-15T18:40:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list"},"modified":"2023-03-15T18:50:50","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T18:50:50","slug":"unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list","title":{"rendered":"Unemployment tops Sona wish list"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Namibia. <\/strong><\/span>All eyes will be on President Hage Geingob tomorrow when he delivers his penultimate State of the Nation Address, with many pondering how he intends to address the country\u2019s unemployment quagmire, which has reached crisis proportions.<\/p>\n

Fresh in his memory will be last week\u2019s incident, where 2 000 desperate Namibians thronged the premises of a local restaurant to compete for six casual positions.<\/p>\n

According to a report by the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Namibia\u2019s unemployment rate stood at 33.6% in 2021, while the young in the age group 20-24 made up 57.0%.<\/p>\n

Over the past few years, droughts, a global economic meltdown which affected commodity prices, the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict had<\/p>\n

muddled attempts by Geingob\u2019s administration to address the country\u2019s biggest challenges.<\/p>\n

However, if the recent N$84.6 billion national budget and projected revenue is anything to go by, Namibia is a country getting out of the woods. Tomorrow\u2019s Sona will not be a walk in the park for Geingob, as he will be expected to inspire confidence in those seeking answers.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this point, the most concerning issue is youth unemployment. We are at a point where as government, we must accelerate our efforts to curb youth unemployment.<\/p>\n

We, therefore, expect that the President will drive us in a direction that will guarantee jobs to young people,\u201d said Swapo Party Youth League secretary Ephraim Nekongo in response to New Era questions.<\/p>\n

\u201cSecondly, we expect the Sona to highlight the importance of the agricultural sector, and reiterate government\u2019s commitment to ensuring food security and independence. Our country has witnessed the discovery of oil and other mineral resources. We would like the President\u2019s Sona to highlight our gains as a republic in the bargaining position in terms of State shareholding, skills transfer, envisioned revenue-generation and job-creation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are confident that during Sona, the President will continue to restore hope in the masses of our people as the Swapo-led government continues to demonstrate that it indeed represents the hopes and aspirations of the people of Namibia,\u201d said Nekongo.<\/p>\n

His sentiments were echoed by Landless People\u2019s Movement youth leader, Duminga Ndala.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe skyrocketing youth unemployment rate in the country should be top of his priority. We are definitely in a crisis, and the government is unresponsive to the call at hand.<\/p>\n

The Head of State should pronounce his position on how best we can curb the unemployment rate in the country,\u201d were the observations of Ndala.<\/p>\n

The youthful politician also expects Geingob to provide a blueprint on how his administration will reform the agricultural sector. \u201cAs a country, we should strive to address poverty and hunger by becoming food-secure. Lastly, the president must provide an in-depth analysis on corruption<\/p>\n

in the allocation of resources. This relates to the N$2.8 billion health tender that was corruptly allocated to the politically-connected elites,\u201d Ndala stated.<\/p>\n

Like Ndala, political commentator Ndumba Kamwanyah expects the former Prime Minister to face the unemployment crisis head-on by taking the country into his confidence.<\/p>\n

The Sona, he said, should move away from rhetoric and confront the situation on the ground by being specific and detailed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe issue of the unemployed youth is a national crisis. Education is a national<\/p>\n

crisis, and the distribution of resources through the procurement system is a<\/p>\n

national crisis,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The pundit also wants the president to provide an accountability report from the last Sona.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat are the outcomes of the investment board\u2019s Dubai camping? How much and how much money have been secured from all travelling? Where are we with the green hydrogen project, and who are the investors (local and international)?<\/p>\n

Where are we with the education crisis, in light of the President\u2019s meeting with the education leadership?\u201d Kamwanyah wanted to know.<\/p>\n

Genocide<\/p>\n

Additionally, another commentator feels that it is high time that Geingob sets the record straight once and for all on government\u2019s genocide stance, following a widely rejected N$18 billion appeasement extended by Germany.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would love the President to provide guidance as to how his administration intends to proceed with the genocide negotiations in the aftermath of the rejection of the joint declaration by the affected communities. He should provide clear directions on how and when the negotiations will commence again,\u201d lawyer and social commentator Natjirikasorua Tjirera said.<\/p>\n

Similarly, he branded the unemployment crisis a \u201cticking time-bomb\u201d that warrants urgent interventions. \u201cThe President should deal with how he seeks to address the pandemic of youth unemployment. To this end, I would want him to announce how government intends to create employment by ensuring that most Namibian raw materials are processed at home, and that we become self-sustainable,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

On the education front, Tjirera anticipates alternatives on how to go about getting better results, going forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cGovernment needs to create a conducive environment for learning and teaching, and stop blaming the teachers. The teachers, like many of us, are probably confused by the continuous changing and chopping of the system. We should have a clear system, and be consistent in its implementation,\u201d the soft-spoken analyst asserted.<\/p>\n

Economy<\/p>\n

Leading economist Salomo Hei said there is a need for Geingob to provide certainty around economic policies still hanging in the air.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a need for certainty in terms of the Investment Bill, the status of the National Equitable Economic Empowerment Framework (NEEEF), and other pending policy documents. There is a need to also speak to government policy in terms of the oil discovery,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Namibia confirmed its third oil discovery offshore this month, and Hei believes the government should be at the forefront to ensure that the blessing does<\/p>\n

not turn into a curse.<\/p>\n

Another economist, academic Omu Kakujaha-Matundu, lamented the fact that Namibians are swimming in a pool of<\/p>\n

poverty.<\/p>\n

The country, he said, needs to be rescued, and soon.<\/p>\n

The economist is also adamant that the President should unequivocally tell the nation how his government is going to take them out of this quandary.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe nation is in a bad state; with high levels of unemployment, more so the very high unemployment among the youth. The problem is made worse by the cost-of-living crisis, which has thrown many Namibians into deeper poverty. So, we have a nation living on the edge,\u201d said Kakujaha- Matundu.<\/p>\n

He proposed that Geingob comes up with a plan to rescue the economy, and put bread on the table for many Namibians who are going to bed hungry.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Namibia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Namibia. All eyes will be on President Hage Geingob tomorrow when he delivers his penultimate State of the Nation Address, with many pondering how he intends to address the country\u2019s unemployment quagmire, which has reached crisis proportions. Fresh in his memory will be last week\u2019s incident, where 2 000 desperate Namibians thronged the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":41271,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,7,12],"tags":[234,236,233],"class_list":["post-41272","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-head-lines","category-policy","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-namibia","tag-namibia"],"yoast_head":"\nUnemployment tops Sona wish list - Namibia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"All eyes will be on President Hage Geingob tomorrow when he delivers his penultimate State of the Nation Address, with m ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Unemployment tops Sona wish list\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"All eyes will be on President Hage Geingob tomorrow when he delivers his penultimate State of the Nation Address, with m ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Namibia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-03-15T18:40:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-03-15T18:50:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nambia\/sites\/29\/2023\/03\/postQueueImg_1678893033.79.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"479\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Unemployment tops Sona wish list\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-15T18:40:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-03-15T18:50:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list\"},\"wordCount\":1088,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nambia\/sites\/29\/2023\/03\/postQueueImg_1678893033.79.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"africa press\",\"Africa Press-Namibia\",\"namibia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"head lines\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/unemployment-tops-sona-wish-list\",\"name\":\"Unemployment tops Sona wish list - 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