KATIMA MULILO – The Zambezi region records an average of 34 gender-based violence (GBV) related cases every month.

This was said by Detective Senior Inspector Rahele Tawana of the Namibian Police Force (NamPol), on Friday when she presented an overview at the launch of the regional communication campaign to end the scourge.

Tawana said 90 percent of people who endure GBV are women and children, with 10 percent being men.
As of 2022, 306 GBV cases were reported in the region, with 298 reported in 2023 and 269 as of 2024.

She said major interventions by the police have seen a decline in the number of cases reported annually.

“NamPol and other stakeholders have employed interventions aimed at reducing GBV in the region, such as awareness campaigns conducted quarterly at schools, community, churches and through radio,” she said.

Tawana told stakeholders that since 2019, the region has had a regional committee on GBV – the Zambezi Regional Permanent Task Force – headed by the regional governor whose purpose is to oversee and initiate programmes aimed at reducing GBV in the region. “Challenges, however, are late reporting of GBV incidents, a situation that compromises effective investigation of cases and the withdrawal of cases by complainants or victims of GBV,” she stated. Meanwhile, Riaan Siyama of the Building Every Opportunity for Change organisation, called on everyone to play a role in the fight against GBV.
“There’s nothing for the majority without the majority,” he said.
-Nampa