The story of the rise of Asser Uakondjisa Kauazunda from the dusty streets of Nau Aib in Okahandja to the pinnacle of stage management in Namibia is awe-inspiring. 

While he has always been a fan of public service, he never knew he would end up spending the biggest part of his life as a dedicated civil servant and still doing what he loves. 

In his mind, at the time, arts-related jobs in the civil service were those of teachers. 

Soon enough, however, the powers that be realised the importance of fusing the arts and media, in the scheme of things, and in came the College of the Arts (Cota) Media Department. 

Kauazunda registered at the Cota in 2002 and graduated in 2005 with an Applied Art Diploma in Radio Production. 

Today, he is the technical coordinator for the National Theatre of Namibia (NTN), an agency of the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture’s Directorate of Arts – a position he has occupied since 2016. 

Looking back, the family man remembers a trail of hardship, yet a purpose-driven journey.

“Nobody in my extended family believed that being in the arts will get this far. To them, people who study the arts wind up as substance abusers and common losers, which I think, is a misconception that needs to be rubbished with the disdain that it deserves,” Kauazunda stressed.

Curtain up

He revealed that his career at the NTN started during his student years when he worked at the venue as a stagehand. 

He was later promoted to the position of stage manager, albeit on a freelance basis, before eventually landing his current job.

“As technical coordinator, I oversee the design, planning, preparation and execution of lighting, sound and other technical equipment during theatre productions,” he said. 

He further acts in an advisory role for the show’s producer or director as to what equipment to use in addition to managing the general upkeep of all the necessary paraphernalia. 

With skills and acquired experience, Kauazunda would have been working anywhere else; however, his heart remains with public agencies. 

“As the saying goes, the government is the people and the people are the government. So, if I want to serve the people, government and its agencies are where I ought to be,” Kauazunda maintained, adding that ever since he discovered there are employment prospects for people who are in arts in the government, he has been looking forward to an opportunity to join the public workforce.

He does not shy away from the fact that working for the State comes with attractive perks that can be enticing for anyone. 

“The government as an employer promotes people and affords them opportunities for growth via scholarships and bursaries,” he said, adding that upon completing his studies, he travelled to neighbouring South Africa – on the government’s ticket – where he underwent further training while benefitting from the exposure to how things are done across the border. 

He cites the opportunity to inspire other artistically inclined people to take up their careers in the arts sector as a rewarding feeling he experiences on the job every day. 

In his own words, arts and culture bring to the fore the identity of a nation, and he is proud to be involved in making this happen.

Perform

But his job is not without challenges – and in this case, these hindrances are homegrown. 

“Our main challenge comes from parents who discourage their children from taking up careers in the arts due to their perception that it can be a gateway to their children being exposed to other social ills. My word to these parents is that arts today are an industry that created billionaires in other countries. The reason that it has not done so here is because of such negative views. If you give your children a firm foundation, they will remain focused on their goals, despite their exposure,” Kauazunda stressed.

He urged those who harbour opinions that civil servants are lazy and ineffective to try walking in the shoes of a public service employee for one day.

“Many of the people who say these things form their opinions based on hearsay and have never visited any public office. If ineffectiveness was the thing in the past, then things have changed for the better,” he maintained. 

The youthful Kauazunda has already decided government will be where he would toil until his retirement. 

On his bucket list, he said, is a plan meant to inspire more young people to pursue arts-related careers, and it will be rolled out eventually.