Oshakati
The Deputy Minister of Industrialisation, Trade and SME Development, Pieter van Der Walt said the Open Market and the new Community Hall should be vehicles for the private sector to be creative and in return create jobs to improve the living standards.
He said Oshikuku market should aim to reduce the unemployment rate by creating jobs for residents of Oshikuku and surrounding areas instead of relying on government alone to create jobs. “The development of this open market is therefore aimed at creating economic independency and self-employment, as opposed to Namibia remaining a country for job seekers,” stated van Der Walt. Van Der Walt was speaking at the inauguration of the Oshikuku Open Market and the Community Hall last week on Thursday. The deputy minister further said the open market should be a turning point of ensuring the market will provide a focal meeting point were both sellers and buyers can meet.
Similarly, the deputy minister also said consumers on the other hand would also be able to see the range of prices of produce on offer and make choices based on the preference of income. Sellers on the other hand can sell their produce and compare the quality and prices of their produce amongst each other.
“This will in the long run have a positive impact on manufacturing, value addition and product diversification; development and improvement thus making retail and commercial working and marketing standards, systems and methods better and easier,” he said. He also implored the nation to play a big role in being self-sufficient recounting that there are countless working opportunities in different sectors such as agriculture and agro-food processing manufacturing construction, industry and services.
“This Open Market could not have come at a better time, considering the high rate of unemployment in the country, also mitigated by the heavy dependency of our economy or exporting our raw natural resources to countries for further processing and production of finished products and services, implying that we export crucial and highly skilled jobs to these countries,” stressed van Der Walt.
Equally, he also appealed to local investors to use such opportunities to seriously participate in the country’s economy. He said it is time for the local investors to give up the culture of thinking only of quick profits where the local investors are unable to think of long-term business planning investment.
He pleaded with business community to ensure the facility is kept clean and is not vandalised.