Kandjeke impressed by sporting prowess

Auditor-general Junias Kandjeke says he is impressed by the way the community of Onamatanga has turned daily activities into a popular sport day, but added he is concerned about the future of the community.Last weekend Onamatanga hosted its ninth annual competitive games tournament at the Helvi Mpingana Kondombolo Horse Racing Sport Field, where local champions competed in four sport codes including archery, mahangu pounding, horse racing and skipping rope jumping.Kandjeke, who is also the patron of the Onamatanga Primary School near Omakange in the Omusati Region, attended the event last Saturday where he told Namibian Sun the community needs to use the competition as a tool to inspire young children to study and perform well in school. He said he learnt that many young people in that community do not go to school, which concerns him. According to the Onamatanga school principal Johannes Shaanika, the school currently has 128 enrolled learners from pre-primary to Grade 7, and since 2008 when he became the school principal, it has only managed to produce one university student who is currently a third-year at Unam's Hifikepunye Pohamba campus in Ongwediva. The isolated community of Onamatanga has only one primary school that until last year only taught up to Grade 6, but received a curriculum extension to Grade 7 this year.After completing school at Onamatanga children are expected to continue at Omakange or Opuwo or any school in region, which according to Shaanika is the biggest challenge facing the community.He said there are a few children who have families in communities where they are continue their schooling, but the majority do not and return due to their social welfare status.“These children are growing up in a very remote area with poor parents who only know about their livestock and grazing. Many communities where they go to continue their education are a bit more advanced. Therefore, it is sometimes very difficult for these children to cope, especially those who do not have family in the communities where they are going. They end up coming back to join their families and start doing domestic work,” Shaanika said.He added the biggest challenge is the parents who also have little to no understanding of the importance of education. He said parents do not motivate their children to finish their education.“We have the IK Tjimuviva school at Omakange with a hostel and we make sure that most of our children are placed there. Now that we are up to Grade 7, we are trying our level best to get our children placement at secondary schools such as Negumbo, Onawa and Canisianum. Teachers are doing their best to make sure that learners are motivated and assisted,” he said.Kandjeke said the annual sport competition is an ideal strategy to inspire the children to continue with their education.“I am more concerned about the future of this community. I mingled with the people and I found out that many young people I have seen around have dropped out of school and they are not doing anything significant. These people, especially the youth, need to be motivated to get a proper education. This is crucial for their future,” Kandjeke said. He said the competition needs prizes designed to motivate the youth to get educated. Kandjeke said since he is the school patron he will use the opportunity to make sure that the school children are getting a better education.Shaanika said since Kandjeke became the patron he has assisted the school with teaching aids.Learners at Onamatanga used to be taught in makeshift classrooms until 2015 when two fishing companies donated money to construct proper ones. Erongo Fishing donated N$750 000 while Gendev contributed N$250 000.ILENI NANDJATO

Kandjeke impressed by sporting prowess

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Namibian Sun 2025-03-21

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Kandjeke impressed by sporting prowess

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Namibian Sun 2025-03-21

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