By Frederick Philander WINDHOEK “On every journey there are important milestones and turning points. And today would seem to be one of those decisive moments for Namibia as we have come together here for these few days to make crucial decisions about the future of education in Namibia, and specifically about the Education and Training Sector Improvement Programme (ETSIP).” So said Minister of Education, Nangolo Mbumba, last week in an overview at a joint appraisal meeting of ETSIP. A number of education stakeholders attended the gathering to assess the road ahead for the programme, which received about N$400-million in pledged funding. “We have been out campaigning for additional funds, and happily we are now in a position to present a programme, which we believe is coherent and fit for the purpose, and which is fully funded. We are so convinced of the merits of ETSIP that we have begun its implementation, as far as we are able, using the funds of the GRN, in anticipation of the pledged funds becoming available, as a result of this joint appraisal,” Mbumba informed those present. The Minister also said the Ministry of education is impatient to see the implementation of this programme for it to produce citizens with a good quality, secondary education. “It is such citizens who can propel us out of poverty and into the ranks of the countries that are known as knowledge-based societies. Our aspiration, as it says in the sub-title of the ETSIP Programme Document, is to be “a learning nation”, and the implementation of ETSIP will realize this aspiration,” he said.