Hilma Nalupe Kleopas Petrus, a 32-year-old motivational speaker and advocate for the visually impaired, is preparing to walk 77 kilometres from Okahandja to the Office of the Prime Minister in Windhoek on 5 September 2025. This is Petrus’ quest to raise awareness about the challenges faced by persons with disabilities and survivors of gender-based violence...
National
‘We’ve been failed’, retired artisan
TSUMEB – Retired artisan and technical instructor Roelf van Wyk, who taught at the Namibia Institute of Mining and Technology (NIMT) for over 30 years, has criticised Namibia’s failure to support artisans beyond basic training. He said the country is not equipping them to become job creators. In an interview last month in Tsumeb, the...
Inside Namibian govt’s N$47b asset register
Lahja Nashuuta Have you ever wondered what the Namibian government owns andwhere? At the onset, the Government of the Republic of Namibia owns immovable assets with a combined value of N$47.4 billion, which this publication can confirm. In this article, New Era exclusively breaks down the government’s asset register, infrastructural gaps, challenges, and sharp inequalities...
Letter – Suicide: The silent cost of masculinity in Namibia
Namibia continues to face terrifying losses of young men to suicide. Between August 2022 and June 2023, 623 lives were lost, which is an average of over one person per day. Of these, 80% were men, a pattern that has remained disturbingly consistent over time. With a suicide rate of 9.7 per 100 000 people,...
Editorial – Be your brother’s keeper
Ubuntu reminds us that when your neighbour’s house is on fire, you do your best to help extinguish the fire, even if your hut is not immediately attached to the one in flames. This is because you are human and know the difficulties of living out in the open. You have been there, and would...
Know Your Civil Servant – Tackling mental health head-on …Didalelwa’s story
Lahja Nashuuta Magdalena Didalelwa is a trained nurse serving under the Ministry of Health and Social Services with more than two decades of experience in the mental health sector in Namibia. She holds a basic nursing diploma, which included foundational modules on mental health. But her passion for the field led her to pursue further...
On the spot with Lahja Nashuuta – Nekundi’s bold vision
Lahja Nashuuta The Ministry of Works and Transport has unveiled an ambitious action plan to accelerate infrastructure development, enhance service delivery and address long-standing logistical and asset management challenges across Namibia. In an interview with New Era journalist Lahja Nashuuta (LN), Minister of Works and Transport Veikko Nekundi (VN) outlined a roadmap that includes reviving...
Muharukua charts Kunene’s Promised Land path
Auleria Wakudumo Kunene governor Vipuakuje Muharukua has unveiled an ambitious and transforming vision for the region, promising a shift from subsistence to sustainability, from potential to prosperity. Delivering the State of the Region Address this week, the governor outlined concrete plans to modernise agriculture, expand mining and integrate rural communities into the mainstream economy. Central...
City pensioners demand debt relief …want pre-paid meters
Lahja Nashuuta The City of Windhoek has come under fire for failing to implement a council resolution to extend debt relief to elderly residents. Under Resolution 29/11/2023, passed on 30 November 2023, the City Council committed to writing off both capital and interest on pensioners’ accounts, on condition the pensioners applied for the installation of...
Teacher suicides give president ‘sleepless nights’
EENHANA – President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has expressed deep concern over the recent suicide cases of three teachers from the Ohangwena region, describing the loss of young lives as very sad. “It gives me sleepless nights. I am sure as residents of the Ohangwena region, you too have been feeling the same way,” she said. She...









