WINDHOEK – Against a backdrop of global and local economic hardships, the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare says it is crucial that strategic plans to eradicate poverty are designed in such a way that more is done with less. This was the message yesterday by Minister Zephania Kameeta at his ministry’s annual strategic review and planning workshop taking place at Hardap Dam until Friday.  

“It is times like these where prioritisation becomes indispensable and where strategic planning becomes key in allocating resources effectively.  As we review the activities of the previous year, let us identify areas of low impact in order to minimise wastages and to drive our efforts and resources to the activities that will improve the living conditions of our people,” said Kameeta at the official opening of the workshop.   

He added that his ministry is cognisant of the cross-cutting nature of poverty and the need for a multi-sectoral approach for its eradication, noting that the ministry cannot eradicate poverty if it continues to work in silos.   

“We have a Directorate of Poverty Eradication and Programme Coordination as an example – this directorate should ensure that all government poverty eradication programmes and initiatives are being implemented effectively and efficiently to ensure a poverty-free Namibia by the year 2025,” Kameeta stated.  

This five-day workshop is intended to guide the ministry towards the realisation of have a caring and inclusive society that ensures coordinated access to basic social services and promotes dignity for all Namibians.  

The Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare has since its inception in 2015 engaged in various processes to ensure the execution of its mandate, which is to initiate, implement and coordinate national programmes to eradicate poverty and reduce inequality. These include the development of a blueprint and its implementation plan, which is in turn guided by the development of the ministerial five-year strategic plan.   

During the official opening Kameeta stressed that there is just a little bit more than five years before targets need to be reached which were set by President Hage Geingob for a poverty-free Namibia in 2025. 

“We therefore need to develop innovative and implementable plans. Let us be creative when crafting our programmes and activities. We have been called upon to explore wealth-redistributive strategies to arrest poverty; it is therefore important for the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare to have strategies and advocate for mechanisms that will ensure that the endowments of this country filters to the poorest of the poor,” said Kameeta.