WINDHOEK – The Ministry of Veterans Affairs has so far approved and registered a huge number of 26 124 people as war veterans who have received the one-off payment of N$50 000 or N$20 000 depending on the years they contributed to the liberation struggle.
In an interview with New Era yesterday Ambassador Hopelong Ipinge, who is the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Veterans Affairs, revealed that another 10 303 war veterans who are unemployed, retired, physically handicapped and veterans whose annual wage is about N$20 000 per annum, are receiving the monthly grant of N$2 200 each.
Further, he disclosed that a total of 8 217 individual veterans’ projects were approved and funded with N$200 000 per each project of each veteran.
“And about 127 houses for elderly, physically handicapped, sickly and frail veterans were constructed in all fourteen regions,” Ipinge said.
He also said about 793 veterans and dependants of living and deceased veterans are beneficiaries of the educational grants for skills development and so far 61 beneficiaries have been graduated.
Regarding war veterans who have since passed on, Ipinge noted that 277 deceased veterans were given funeral assistance and 242 tombstones were erected at the graves of the deceased veterans to date.
When asked on the progress and process of registration for one to be recognised as a war veteran, the PS said the registration of the applicants for veterans status is an ongoing process, while the wish is that by 2017 the registration process would be scaled down.
The mandate of the ministry is to initiate, promote and implement projects and programmes which address the socio-economic needs of veterans to ensure the integration of veterans into the socio-economic mainstream of the country, and also to ensure that the history of the national liberation struggle is preserved and kept alive.
Its core programmes are veterans welfare development, liberation struggle heritage and coordination and support services.
Namibia is the second country in Southern Africa, after Mozambique, to create a special ministry for former combatants.
About 42 000 Namibians returned from exile during 1989 and 1990, about half of them members of Swapo’s armed wing, the People’s Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN).
Several thousand were absorbed into the newly established police and defence forces, but not all could be accommodated.
In 1998, former freedom fighters marched from the northern rural areas to Windhoek and camped in Parliament Gardens, demanding jobs.
The following year some 8 800 people obtained positions in the police and army, while others were employed as office cleaners.