OMUTHIYA - Oshikoto Regional Council chairperson Samuel Shivute has urged the inhabitants of the region to pay close attention to the challenges they face, including the lack of clean water, and recommend various solutions.
Shivute made the remarks during a regional consultative meeting held at Omuthiya by the National Planning Commission on the Sixth National Development Plan (NDP6) yesterday. He said the region continues to experience a lack of water in most rural areas, and there is a need for boreholes and upgrading of water treatment reservoirs and pipelines to ensure that the challenge is addressed.
Shivute also informed the meeting that the region lacks proper roads, more specifically feeder roads in most areas of the Eengodi, Okankolo, Omuntele and Nehale lya Mpingana constituencies, which hinder development as most of the services are inaccessible.
“We have a high unemployment rate and a lack of school infrastructure mostly in the rural parts of the region such as classrooms and hostels, and tertiary institutions,” he said.
NPC executive director (ED) Wilhencia Uiras said they are in consultations with regional councils and all stakeholders, both agents and beneficiaries of development, to formulate the NDP6, through which the NPC spearheads and coordinates national socio-economic planning.
“The NDP6 will be the last in the series towards Vision 2030 to be implemented from the March 2025/2026 to March 2030/2031 financial years,” said Uiras.
She said the NDP6 calls for all stakeholders, agents and beneficiaries of development to work together and leverage synergies in executing programmes and projects, and discourages dependencies and a recipient syndrome.
The Oshikoto Regional Council’s acting chief regional officer Peter Ndawedwa said that the region will play a crucial role in the implementation of the NDP6 by aligning regional development efforts with national priorities, and coordinating development activities.
“We will collaborate with relevant stakeholders to mobilise resources and implement infrastructure projects effectively,” he said. Ndawedwa. -Nampa