Lahja Nashuuta

Born and bred in the Ohangwena region, Naftali Ananias moved to Windhoek in 2000 in search of greener pastures. 

However, he soon realised that the grass was not much greener in the capital city, reducing him to beg for odd jobs to make ends meet. Ananias makes his way daily to the area along Hans Dietrich-Genscher, near the Friedel’s panelbeaters workshop, where he, along with a few other men in the same position, hang around, waiting for people to stop and offer him a job.

With the country's unemployment rate at approximately 34% (2023 WFP Namibia) and a youth unemployment rate of 48%, the 44-year-old says competition for jobs on the side of the road is high, with no proper coordination making it a survival of the fittest. 

“Here, people run and push each other to give their identity documents once the car of a potential job provider stops,” he told New Era.

He revealed that sometimes a month would pass by without him landing a gig, a situation which has prompted some of the hopefuls to become street beggars. 

“Like this month, I only worked once. The money I was given was also too little to survive on with my wife and the children,” he lamented.

His fellow job-seeker, Festus Haihambo, said they are made to do heavy blue-collar work for very little compensation, with no room for negotiations. 

“Our compensation is on a take-it or leave -it basis.  There is no time for negotiation. If you are lucky that day, you get N$500, otherwise most people who pick us up pay between N$100 and N$400 per service provided,” he said, adding that most of their job providers are Caucasian compatriots and construction companies.

Haihambo hails from the Omusati region, and also came to the city of bright lights in search of employment and education opportunities shortly after he completed matric.  

He pointed out trust issues between job- seekers and job providers as another challenge. This, Haihambo said, is fuelled by misconceptions that many of the men on the side of the road are thieves and housebreakers, which he described as damaging to their reputation. 

Both men feel the Men on the Side of the Road (MSR) organisation, established to help them, has not done much to connect them to the job market nor facilitated training opportunities.

Haihambo, who described himself as a jack of all trades with skills such as mechanics, electrical, bricklaying and gardening, said the MSR was supposed to intervene and build a sort of relationship and trust between the job-seekers and providers, as well as to protect them against exploitation. 

MSR, a non-profit organisation, has for years been accused by various job-seekers of not living up to its promise as per its founding statement.  

Not-for-gain, MSR was formed to address the plight of unemployed and ‘day’ labourers by connecting them to education, training and employment opportunities. 

“Our main objective is to empower unemployed people through a comprehensive programme of self-development, life skills training, technical skills training, and job placements to enable them to better compete in the labour market,” their founding statement reads.

Empty Promises

Haihambo, who has been a member for almost 10 years, said they only made “false promises”, claiming to not have benefitted as much from the MSR as he expected.

“I was part of the group to be registered at this side in 2009. I voluntarily registered because I was impressed by the MSR objectives and goals. It was also because I felt we as job-seekers need an institution of that nature which will advocate on our behalf at all platforms as far as employment is concerned,” he noted.

At the time after listening to their presentation, he saw light at the end of the tunnel.  

Haihambo, a father of five, stated that since they noted down his name as a member, nobody reached out to him, and none of his employers indicated being referred to the site by the MSR.

“Lots of promises were made. We were promised that the institution would link us to job providers, assist with the writing of our CVs and copies, as well as source old clothes and food items for us. These promises are yet to be fulfilled,” he emphasised.

Ananias, who has been a member since 2001, corroborated Haihambo’s narrative, saying, “I did not really benefit much. Back then, the office used to make copies for us for free of charge and allowed us to use the computer to write our CVs, but later they stopped it. I was never called for training or given a job at the institution, or just to update us on any available vacancies”.

MSR responds

MSR CEO Crystal Beukes denied the allegations, describing them as baseless, devoid of any truth, and meant to tarnish the institution’s image. She pointed out that the institution has impacted about 3 000 individuals since 2017. 

“All members are assisted with information about vacancies, with job applications using the computers connected to the internet, typing of their CVs, and job applications for those who are not computer-literate and free printing of their job applications.  If MSR has money available, they can also be enrolled at a training institution for a vocational trade,” she said.

 Beukes stressed that MSR’s invitation to the unemployed remains open for them to come and receive assistance in preparing for the job market through the many interventions currently available. 

She also urged companies and individuals seeking day labourers to contact MSR for references.

MSR beneficiaries

One of the MSR’s success stories is Mbakondja Katjizuko, a resident of Mariental, who said he has benefited in terms of training and job opportunities. 

He attributed his current job at Ramavi Car Maintenance and Assistance as a sales executive to the MSR membership. 

Katjizuko learned about MSR while visiting the Mondesa Multi-purpose Centre’s library in 2022. “The office is opposite the library and out of curiosity, I decided to enter and find out what is happening. That is when I discovered that it was indeed a non-profit organisation which assists people to get jobs. I then registered, and a week later, I was called in for training that comprised life skills, basic typing skills, and CV and cover letter construction,” he continued. 

Also sharing her testimony of success was Selma Cornelius, a former Standard Bank consultant.  The Swakopmund native said what attracted her to visit the MSR office was their slogan that reads “We connect people to employment opportunities”.

“When I went in, I was fortunate to speak to the CEO, who guided me on how to become a member, as well as explained to me the aims and objectives of the institution. I really benefited in terms of training and networking,” she said.

Cornelius added that MSR had some sort of agreement with Community Skills Development Centres (Cosdecs), where most of the unemployed were placed for training, especially in short courses. 

Through MSR, she landed a Peace Corps Volunteer trainer job in 2022.  

- lnashuuta@gmail.com

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