Staff Reporter
Windhoek-Republican Party MP Clara /Gowases has commended President Hage Geingob for keeping his promise towards elderly people by increasing the monthly pension grant by N$100 per month.
Speaking in the National Assembly last week, /Gowases said she wished to thank Geingob for keeping his promise towards the elderly and once again increasing their old age pension benefit, this time from N$1 100 to N$1 200.
“Geingob had promised that the elderly would receive an old age pension benefit of N$1 300 by the year 2018 and I am pleased to see that out of N$3.3 billion allocated to the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare, N$ 2.4 billion will provide for the old age pension fund,” she said.
Furthermore, /Gowases also applauded the government for free primary and secondary education.
“As a former teacher I am concerned about shortcomings in the Cambridge system of education,” she said, adding that she wants the government to focus on the primary phase of education to lay a firm foundation for children.
“Let us continue to train graduates at this level and produce more primary school teachers,” she said.
/Gowases said learners don’t master basic skills but yet are promoted to the next grade until they drop out at grade 10 and 12 levels.
She said the Cambridge system fails 20% of learners that eventually end up in the streets year in year out. /Gowases also called for the establishment of vocational training centres (VTC) and skills training institutions in all 14 regions to accommodate dropouts and encourage technical jobs.