Paulina Moses

THE chief regional officer of the Oshikoto Regional Council, Frans Enkali, believes the youth should use lessons from Covid-19 to think of creative and innovative ways to add value to the region’s raw materials. 
He said Covid-19 has come to teach us a few lessons, including the need to be self-sufficient as a country and to produce for our own consumption and a surplus to sell.

 “The youth know that they are the future. They should take Covid-19 as a lesson,” he said in an interview. 
“The world is busy producing people who create and innovate and not just those who want to work in offices. Work is also done outside the office, whether in terms of agriculture or industrial production. Let us divorce from the tendency of all of us studying public administration. We cannot all work in offices and study public management. What are we going to administer if there are no companies?” 
It was reported that Oshikoto region could not make e-learning a success due to the fact that only 5% of learners had access to the internet. Asked what is hindering the use of information and communication technology in Oshikoto region and what plans the region’s management has devised to work towards the acceleration of ICT, Enkali said 5% sounds like a low number – but in actual fact, only 13% of the population of Oshikoto live in urban areas. 

“Outside that urban centres are more equipped than rural areas with infrastructures like electricity or connect to internet. Towers and communication networks have been spread across some parts of the region,” he said. 
According to Enkali, provision of electricity was one of the main challenges in the region. 
Enkali further explained that because of the historical background of many of the learners in rural areas, affording a laptop or smartphone is a challenge. 

“Not every family has those facilities or gadgets to use. Cell phones, we have them like torch phones, but not everyone can afford a smart phone to access e-learning,” said Enkali. 
The CRO made comparison to Windhoek and said even the country’s capital is experiencing the same challenges, stating that those in suburbs may have access to e-learning but those in informal areas like Havana are without access to e-learning.