ETOTO – A growing crisis has left women and children having to fend for themselves after most of the purported fathers in Etoto vanished into thin air.

Here,  in this village of the Kunene region, the crisis of absent fathers is not a myth. It is visible to the naked eye.

The shortage of contraceptives is not helping an already ailing situation either.

With fathers absent and resources limited, the burden falls on grandparents like headman Ngorovija Muvi, who, along with other elders, have been forced to step in and provide much-needed support to their grandchildren.

Speaking from his homestead during New Era’s recent visit to the Kunene region, Muvi described the hardships faced by young mothers in his village, located about 170 kilometres from Opuwo.

“This situation is disheartening.

Young mothers here have many children, but the men do not support them. One of my daughters has six children by different fathers, yet only one man contributes to the care of his two children. The others give nothing. My wife and I are forced to share our social grants with our children and grandchildren.”

Struggles 

As the sun rose on a Saturday morning, New Era arrived at Muvi’s homestead in Etoto West. There, he and his wife sat comfortably on traditional mopane log chairs under the scorching sun. Surrounding them were their three daughters and 15 grandchildren, enjoying a modest breakfast of porridge. Some children ate from cooking pots, others from plates, while babies were fed by their mothers.

For outsiders, the number of children might suggest a gathering from neighbouring houses. But in this part of Etoto, it is a common sight for grandparents to care for large numbers of grandchildren, left behind by absentee fathers.

“All these children you see are our responsibility,” Muvi said, gesturing towards a group of children playing nearby.

 “Their fathers are absent, and their mothers depend on us to survive. It’s exhausting, but what choice do we have?” he asked hopelessly.

Although him and his wife manage to scrape by, he said others in the village struggle to make ends meet, with some households caring for up to 30 grandchildren.

Despite the village’s struggles, Muvi remains hopeful that government programmes meant to support marginalised communities will reach his people.

Inconsistency 

He lamented the inconsistent distribution of drought relief food, which was once reliable, but has now become sporadic.

“We used to receive food every month when we first registered for the drought relief programme. It gave us hope, but now we only receive it every four months, and surviving has become much harder,” he lamented.

In addition to food shortages, he expressed disappointment that many children in his village are eligible, but do not receive social grants meant for the poor.

“If we can’t get consistent drought relief, at least let our children benefit from social grants so that they can support their babies,” he suggested.

One of Muvi’s daughters, 35-year-old Kavampu, shared her struggles.

“I have six children. Two of them have the same father, but the others have different fathers. Only the father of two supports his children. The rest, my parents are taking care of,” she confirmed, while her younger sister, a mother of one, looked on sympathetically.

Kavampu stated that in their culture, the Ovazemba people do not traditionally demand child support from men, unless they are married. This has left many women in Etoto fending for themselves and their children without help from the fathers. Her younger sister, who refused to be named, considers herself fortunate that the father of her only child provides financial support.

“Mine sends me money regularly, and sometimes I use it to help my nieces and nephews,” she said. “But it’s painful to see my sisters struggling. My parents spend all their money on groceries for us, instead of enjoying it in their old age,” she continued.

Neighbour

Neighbour Rosaliana Mbuti, who had come to visit Muvi’s house that morning, joined the conversation. She, too, is a victim of fathers who fail to support their children.

At 31, she has six children, each by a different father. None of them are involved in their children’s lives. “I don’t want to have more children, but contraceptives are not available at the hospital,” Mbuti stressed.

Crisis

The shortage of contraceptives has exacerbated the village’s challenges, with more women finding themselves with unplanned pregnancies.

Headman Muvi is urging the government to prioritise stocking local hospitals with family planning resources to relieve the burden on women.

“One of my daughters went to the nearest clinic to get contraceptives, but they were out of stock. She visited the clinic twice earlier this year, and was told they had run out”, he said.

Mbuti echoed this frustration, saying, “I have struggled to raise all these children, and I don’t want to continue giving birth. But family planning services are not available.”

Councillor’s perspective

Epupa constituency councillor Tjimutambo Kuuoko weighed in on the situation, reiterating that the community’s traditional practices play a significant role.

“Many people here live in cohabitation, not formal marriages. In our traditional system, when a woman has a child outside of marriage, the responsibility often falls on the child’s grandfather,” he said.

However, he emphasised that unemployment is the root cause of the crisis. “Many parents don’t have jobs or livestock to support their families. That’s the real issue,” he added.

The councillor gave assurances that efforts are underway to address the problem of unregistered individuals not receiving social grants.

“There is a registration process underway now. If people aren’t registered, it’s likely due to a lack of awareness. We are actively distributing registration forms, so the process is moving forward,” he said while carrying a bunch of forms.

The political leader added that he was in that particular area that Saturday to monitor the registration process that he entrusted to a teacher at the Etoto Primary School.

When asked about the shortage of contraceptives at local clinics, the councillor acknowledged the issue.

“Yes, I’m aware of that. Some women want to use family planning, but supplies are often delayed. This is partly due to the procurement process, where middlemen sometimes slow things down. The ministry of health also needs to improve its supply chain to ensure timely access to these services.”

Pleading

Additionally, Muvi called for urgent government intervention, whether through a consistent drought relief supply, access to social grants, or the provision of contraceptives to help alleviate the pressure on families in this isolated village.