Swakopmund
The Deputy Minister of Marginalised Communities, Royal Jonah Kxoa /Ui/o/oo, has expressed concern over the poor performance of students from marginalised communities at tertiary institutions.
According to /Ui/o/oo, approximately 60 percent of the division’s annual budget goes to educational support for students from marginalised communities to enable them to access tertiary education. However, he says the number of graduates from tertiary institutions is very poor despite consuming a big chunk of the budget.
“We fail to produce tangible results. Therefore we must reflect and reassess our programmes and continue with our efforts to encourage our students to deliver tangible results,” he said.
The deputy minister made the remarks during the official opening of a three-day annual planning and team-building workshop of the marginalised communities division that is currently under way in Swakopmund.
The workshop’s aim is to reflect on the past and present activities of the division and to plan for future programmes.
The division falls under the office of the vice-president and was previously known as the San development programme but was changed to the marginalised communities division to include the Ovatue and Ovatimba communities in Kunene Region.
The objective of the programme is to ensure marginalised communities are fully integrated in the mainstream society and economy.
The deputy minster urged coordinators and planners attending the workshop to ensure at all cost that all programmes in their respective regions for the marginalised are implemented.
“Let us avoid incomplete projects and make sure that our programmes are executed within the set time frame. Let us make sure that our programmes are successful to improve the quality of life for those we serve,’’ he said. He warned regional coordinators that he would visit the implemented projects soon to check on the progress being made by the projects to bring positive change in the lives of people.
“Working for this office is not a walk in the park. We are bound to provide a conducive environment to ensure the success of the marginalised communities to greater heights. Let us provide quality services at all times and cost without any prejudice to our people. We should coexist and cohabitate in a unified cultural diversity. Let us be patriotic to our nation and to future generation development initiatives,” /Ui/o/oo further stated.