Daniel Hafeni

Outjo is a small town in southern Kunene that was founded by colonel Theodor von Leutwein in 1897. The town was established to control indiscriminate hunting and smuggling of ammunition to Kaokoland and Owamboland. 

Additionally, perhaps most importantly, also was to control Rinderpest. 

In 1890s, a military base was set up by the German army. With this came some development such as a borehole with a windmill. These boreholes are still in use 126 years later but will they keep up with the water demand caused by the increasing population?

The Municipality of Outjo is one of the five local authorities that had developed their own water supply systems before NamWater was established. Today, Outjo municipality still utilises the boreholes left behind by the colonial German forces. 

The town has grown to about 12 000 inhabitants. This number seems low compared to most towns in Namibia but the municipality is struggling to supply water to its residents. 

As a matter of fact, they have scheduled monthly, sometimes weekly, water shutdowns. Those familiar with the Eskom crisis in South Africa will understand. Additionally, the municipality is also reluctant to fix standing water taps in the informal settlement, thus it has resolved to fix only few of these taps, thereby putting a huge strain on the taps as one tap could serve up to 500 people per day. Perhaps, this is also another strategy to cut down on the usage of water. 

But what can be done to address the water crisis?

Firstly, Outjo is not an island. 

Interestingly, the president of the Association for Local Authorities in Namibia (ALAN) is a local authority councillor in Outjo. Thus, as a member of ALAN, Outjo should use the envisioned opportunities that this membership brings to address this crisis. 

Water is recognised by the United Nations as a human right, and is fundamental to everyone’s health, dignity and prosperity. Secondly, the municipality has recently been reporting low water levels in the boreholes due to the prolonged dry season. This backs the statement that research is secondary in this country, change in weather patterns is something that has been widely reported. Relying on underground water might not be able to keep up with the growing urban population. Thus, taking notes from the City of Windhoek water department with regard to water treatment for re-use could be one solution. 

Alternatively, Outjo is one of a few towns with good annual rainfall of about 450mm and about 87 rainy days per year. But as reported in the NamWater report of 2020/21, Otavi Mountain land (aquifer), which includes Kunene south or Outjo, has received below average annual rainfall over the past two decades. 

Therefore, another solution could be to construct impounds to harvest rainwater, as the aquifer is not receiving enough water to recharge. Furthermore, the area of Outjo town has a high evaporation rate compared to Otavi, Grootfontein and Tsumeb (the triangle area). 

But comparing it to Hardap and //Kharas regions where the major dams in Namibia are situated, Outjo has both good soil topography, good rain and low evaporation rate, thus also making it suitable to construct impounds and harvest rainwater. 

The large variation in rainfall with time is evident all over the world. 

Thus, the municipality needs to conduct research on what needs to be done and when is it needed. But relying on one thing for a century while the water demand rises, shows a crisis in leadership.

* Daniel Hafeni is a resident of Outjo.