Lahja Nashuuta

Chronicling ultimate rags-to-riches stories in Namibia will never be complete without the inclusion of the story of Kaavera Karaerua.

In 2016, MTC ran a SMS and Win a Million Competition in which Karaerua from Gam in the Otjozondjupa region emerged as the lucky winner, walking away with N$ 1 million in cash.

At the time of the big win, Karaerua only had two donkeys and a few livestock to his name, but eight years later he boasts three kraals and a whopping 200 head of cattle.

The long and short of this story is that Karaerua is living his dream after winning N$1 million from MTC. 

When New Era visited his farm in the Gam area, he confidently revealed how the N$1 million winnings were spent. In his own words, he invested his funds in buying livestock, mainly cattle, goats, and sheep as well as went on to add some development to his homestead by extending his house and setting up water harvesting tanks.

The 63-year-old said he does not have any regrets and is satisfied with how he used his winnings. 

“Every time I look at the three kraals, I feel like I am still having that million in my bank account,” he said.

Asked about how he felt, about being a millionaire, Karaerua maintained that gaining that money was a true blessing.

“I always tell people that what is meant for you will be yours one good day. I remember, for the duration of that competition, I spent at least N$100 on SMSs because they indicated that the more you text the more you stand a chance of winning,” Karaerua said, thanking the Gods that he at least had money for text messaging at his disposal, having sold a cow at the time.

“That is the money I used to SMS, whenever I was in the veld heading the cows for grazing, I would be texting throughout the day. It was like something was motivating me to do so,” he said.

Humble beginnings

Karaerua was born in Maun, Botswana, where his parents and other Ovaherero fled the genocide committed by German settlers, in the then South West Africa. 

He is the firstborn of four siblings.

He embarked on his schooling career at the Makaku Primary School until grade seven, after which he was forced to drop out because his father got ill and needed a hand to attend to the livestock.  

After Namibia gained independence, they had to return to their country of origin, but not before getting married to his wife - in 1993 - with whom he has five children.

“The repatriation started with women and children, and we were supposed to follow with our livestock. However, in 1994 the outbreak occurred and the Botswana government instructed farmers in that area that all cattle must be killed. We started slaughtering our cattle and selling the meat,” Karaerua said, adding that by the end of that year, he managed to raise about N$126 000 making his move to Namibia possible.

“When I entered Namibia, I only had two donkeys. I used the money I raised to assist my family and relatives who were struggling with food and to enrol our children in school. Hence, with that money I could only buy 17 head of cattle,” he said, further lamenting that it was not easy to maintain them as water and grazing was again an issue.

“I joined the Game Farmers Associations and through that, I managed to sell a cow every year to Meatco. Around that time, I won a bull from Meatco but unfortunately, it died a year later, killed by another bull,” Karaerua narrates.

Challenges

According to Karaerua, settling at Gam was not easy as they had to survive on the small number of livestock that they had. Also, the grazing area was not sufficient, and water was scarce. 

“We were all staying in a small area that I shared with my wife, and kids, as well as my sisters and their kids. However, I had hoped that things would be fine one day.

The real test, he said, came with the arrival of the N$1 million as there were too many advisors and people trying to con him, but none succeeded. 

“Hence, I have no regrets about how I spent that one million because for me, the value of those three kraals is equivalent to a million if not more. MTC has transformed my life for the better,” he said.

Overnight millionaire

Sometime in 2016, one morning as he was preparing to leave the house to take his cattle for grazing, his son came running saying “Papa, someone is calling”, when he answered, it was a call from MTC informing him about his winnings and that he should come to Windhoek immediately.  

“I was over the moon, but I did not panic. I thanked MTC and God and went to inform my wife. The next day a gentleman from MTC picked me up and we left for Windhoek where they asked me if I needed counseling before they deposited my money. I refused because I had already made up my mind about how I would spend that money. The money was then deposited in my account, and I went back home,” Karauerua said.

Spending a million

Karaerua told New Era that he started buying livestock, as his focus was on special breeding. 

“I bought two bulls and about 100 cattle. By then I had no sheep and I decided to buy 50 sheep and 50 more goats. As you can see, I now have three kraals for cows because I have about 220 cows and about 147 small stock, excluding those born this year,” he said, further revealing that two of his bulls are certified.

In terms of other upgrades, Karaerua bought two bakkies and managed to solve the water scarcity problems by drilling two boreholes in the veld and ensuring potable water to the homestead.

He extended his home from two bedrooms to four bedrooms with an additional three stand-alone rooms and further managed to enrol their children at universities, whereby he still assists those who are studying remotely with computers and the necessary data. 

Future

The status is seemingly so good for Karaerua that he does not want to disturb it with thoughts of another future. He is content as a farmer.

“Everything is going well, although the grazing range is still a challenge as the capacity is too small. The livestock are maintaining themselves because I can always sell one or two when an issue arises. Yes, it has been eight years since I got the money and if you ask me how I spend the money, I am glad to show you… there is your money,” he said pointing to the kraal and all around him.

-lnashuuta@gmai.com