2015-08-05Staff Report 2 "Born on May 9, 1992, George Kambala is an aspiring motivational speaker, activist and leadership trainer. Born in Windhoek, he started school at the Martti Ahtisaari Primary School where he completed his grade 7. It was in primary school that Kambala picked up his passion for public speaking and business. Thereafter he went to the Centaurus High School, and later moved to the P.K. De Villiers (Keetmanshoop) for his Grade 9 to mid-Grade 12. “Growing [up], my father was a driver at Baker Electric and mom a student nurse at the time I started going to primary school. There were times that all you could eat was porridge and maasbankers (horse mackerel) all day and every day. “I also used to help my mom to sell at her little shop stall. So you’d go to school and later go and sell fruits, veggies, sweets and all sort of things. At around 16h00 she’ll let you go to start doing homework, whilst she’s busy preparing dinner. Any mistake made you’d get smacked on your head. “Reading was the most enticing, hence you’d get all the papers of that day to read and tomorrow you should write a summary of what you read the previous day,” he recalls. In 2005 he relocated to Oranjemund and only returned after matriculating in 2010 from Jan Jonker Afrikaner High School. That is where his passion for public speaking was first tested as he joined the Namibia National Students Organisation (NANSO) in 2010. Whilst in NANSO he held a few strategic positions both at branch and regional level. After completing Grade 12, Kambala took a gap year to reflect on his journey and to plan for his future as a young radical. During 2011 he participated and graduated in the Youth Leadership Development Programme, which helps young leaders to sharpen their skills in all angles, including speaking, writing and leading, to mention a few. In 2012 Kambala took up his studies at the Institute of Information and Technology (I.I.T) with a focus on IT, obtaining an A+ qualification and Windows 7 expert qualification. After obtaining his qualification, Kambala’s academic journey continued when he registered for a course in Taxation and Management at the University of Namibia (Unam). Kambala grew up in the dusty streets of Katutura and described his teenage years as fun and memorable. “I was one naughty kid growing up. I was known on the streets as “Die man met ‘n plan” (the man with a plan). I was the one who always got people in trouble and at the same time got them out of it. I also had a few stints in business, as I used to sell sweets on the streets and at school,” says Kambala. Kambala got his first job in 2013 as a graphic designer at Vision 2030 Focus Magazine and later climbed the ladder to be appointed as marketing executive at the same company. In that same year, as a vibrant youth and having the young at heart, Kambala was recruited as a consultant for the Youth Leadership Development Programme to assist in developing young people’s talents. He later become the Assistant Programme Coordinator, a position he held until October 2014. He then left full-time employment to focus on his small business, Ohamba Investments. “Life is about choices and we all need to make some, whether right or wrong. It’s all about how you get back up,” says Kambala. “As young people we always tend to make mistakes, but it’s how we get up from them that make us stronger. Never be apologetic for being young, different and unique. We all have our own destinies to find and fulfil. “Remember we are all pregnant with potential, potential to be anything we want to be, but what matters is how and when you give birth to it. It’s how you take care of your baby that is your potential? I live by four Ps, which I call the four Ps of Life – Proper Planning Prevents Problems.” Kambala is currently the Executive Director of Ohamba Consultants Southern Africa, an organisation that focuses on organisational development, youth development, motivational speaking and event management. Kamabala is also one of the leaders of the Affirmative Repositioning (AR) movement. " 2015-08-05Staff Report 2
