Born and raised in Rundu, Luis Tshita Munana is the last born of his six siblings. He attended the Noordgrens Secondary School in his hometown from Grade 1 to 10. In Grade 10 he became a head boy of the school, which is something that has never happened in the school’s history where a junior becomes a head boy. After completing Grade 10, he moved to Windhoek to do higher level subjects because his school did not offer high level subjects at the time. He then went on to continue with his Grade 11 at three schools , Windhoek High School, Jan Mohr and Hochland High School because the principals of the schools wouldn’t allow him to take five subjects in higher level. So he then finally settled at the Academia High School.
“As per norm a student is only allowed to have six subjects, four being higher level subjects. I wanted to have seven subjects where six are on higher level. Academia High gave me that opportunity,” says Munana. Within the first semester at Academia, Munana was one of the top five best academic achievers at his school. “As a teenager I was very spiritual and goal oriented. My parents taught me respect and other bible based principals. I knew from a very early age I had to work harder than my peers due to my circumstances at home. My parents did their best by not only raising my siblings and I but also providing shelter and food to five of my cousins and grandmother,” he says. Munana was involved in almost all social activities at school such as the Book Club, Debating, Business Orator, Drama clubs, Junior Achievement, Stock Exchange Group . He also did a lot of sports in his school years playing in the junior Volley Ball national team, and also at the regional Rugby Team when he was in primary school.
Munana was a straight “A” student, a class captain in most of his grades, a learners representative council (LRC) member during his entire school years, and a teenager who preferred not to have a social life because he wanted to devote his time to his studies.
“I always wanted to excel at whatever I do. I was very competitive and being goal oriented at a young age meant other kids will either like you or dislike you. You give up your social life because you dedicate it to your studies and extra-mural activities. There wasn’t really time for soccer in the streets, play station or sneaking into clubs and bars to this day I have not seen the inside of Rundu’s popular club ‘Backstage’. I am still a bit of an introvert because even in my adulthood, I don’t go clubbing,” he said.
The first time Munana saw the inside of some popular clubs in Windhoek was last month at the after party of Voigush TV launch, of which he is currently a host. “My teenage years were quite exceptional because I knew that my goal when I was in Rundu was to make it out and move to Windhoek. When I got to Windhoek my goal was to make it further to South Africa, while in South Africa the dream was to travel and see world,” says Munana.
After high school, he received a bursary from an Accounting & Auditing Firm to study at the University Of Cape Town, but due to other costs the bursary didn’t cover. Munana was unable to leave for the University of Cape Town, and at the time he did not apply for a government loan so he was stranded without funding for his studies.
Munana’s older brother and sister took out study loans for him but it wasn’t enough as the city was expensive in terms of rent, transport, accommodation, text books and school costs.
He then also started working as a waiter to get extra funds to pay for his school and textbooks along with the aid of his siblings. “The challenge was balancing work and school at the same time and also worry about bills and as African, it is natural to send money home when one starts to work,” he says.
He one day wants to retire from television and modeling and move behind the scene to focus on the business side of the industry, and put his financial qualification to use. “My teenage years and family guidance literally established the foundation of my adulthood. To the youth out there, stay loyal to your dreams, keep true to your passion and have something to fall back on. It all gets better with time, don’t stop believing and remember to hold on to that feeling.” says Munana.
Munana is a founding member of the Fashion Council of Namibia and also a financial analyst at three companies.
By Selma Neshiko