By Tuulikki Abraham
LÜDERITZ – The Gabriel Pham Pre-School that has for more than five years been operating from Maria Mutilifa’s shack at Area 7 will soon move to a new address after plans were mooted to build a new kindergarten that will house 82 children.
Maria Mutilifa the owner of the nursery says she established the kindergarten in 2009.
The children at the nursery range in age from one year to five years. Their parents, most of them unemployed while others are security guards and labourers at fish factories, each month pay the nursery N$40 for the care of their offspring.
Initially she started with 28 children but since then the number kept on increasing. As the shack became too small Mutilifa was compelled to start thinking about constructing a formal kindergarten.
Mutilifa, 47, indicated she asked the Lüüderitz Town Council and the regional councillor’s office to provide her with land to build the proposed new kindergarten. She also requested financial assistance from council.
The Lüderitz Town Council then provided the much-needed land for the kindergarten and it also promised to have the land serviced, including an access road, water supply, sewerage and electricity services.
The memorandum of understanding signed between the Lüderitz Town Council and Mutilifa states the property may only be used for a kindergarten.
All related activities shall be restricted to within the area identified by the erf, and the rental amount shall be calculated per month inclusive of VAT payable in advance to the town council.
On 17 August the regional councillor Jan Scholtz had a meeting with parents to talk about the new plot and presented them with the proposed plan on the new kindergarten. Scholtz informed parents that it will cost more than N$250 000 to construct.
“I approached different companies of which the Anglo American Namibia Foundation, three other companies as well as the //Kharas Regional Council are willing to support and help build this kindergarten for future leaders of this country,” said Scholtz.
He called upon the parents to give their support in their free time when the building starts.