Paheja Siririka

WINDHOEK- Sanlam Namibia launched its fifth cultural initiative dubbed the Sanlam My Culture My Life programme. The roadshow is aimed at promoting and preserving the diverse Namibian cultures among the youth in general and school learners in particular. 

The roadshow started Monday at Empelheim Junior Secondary School in Mariental and ends in Lüderitz at Agra Pequena Senior Secondary School this coming Friday.

Sanlam’s Marketing & Communications Manager Hilaria Graig said culture is an entity that needs to be appreciated. “With this initiative, Sanlam wants to ensure that the youths celebrate their cultures and take pride in it. It also ensures that young people understand their culture and develop a love and appreciation for their culture and tradition,” said Graig. 

“If we don’t work hard to preserve our culture and traditions, we will gradually start having a serious deficit in our cultural norms and traditions.” She added Sanlam through the programme has been able to visit different schools throughout the country. “There have been many meaningful engagements with all the learners at the schools,” she said. 

This year, the initiative aims at popularising the Nama culture and traditions. The project will entail a team of well-known and acclaimed Namibian artists, namely: Adora, S-Man and Bones who all have cultural links to the targeted audience. They will be visiting five selected schools in the Hardap and //Kharas regions, engaging with learners, teachers and traditional leaders on their culture. The selected schools for this roadshow are Empelheim Junior Secondary School, Oaseb Senior Secondary School, Suiderlig Senior Secondary School, Schmelenville Combined School and Agra Pequena Senior Secondary School.

Chief Petrus Simon Moses Kooper of the Nama Traditional Leaders Association was particularly appreciative of the gesture of the event taking place in the south. “I am pleased with the initiative that Sanlam is undertaking and I couldn’t agree more with Graig that it is important to go into schools and teach learners about their culture,” said Kooper. 

The initiative is strengthening and complementing the just ended Nama Cultural Festival that took place in Keetmanshoop. “If we do not teach our children about their culture, we are sure to lose it,” said Kooper. He added that as elders they have a responsibility to pass on their culture and traditions to the young people so as to ensure they do not lose it.

The planned cultural roadshow will be hosted in the areas of Mariental, Gibeon, Keetmanshoop, Bethanie and Lüderitz. The campaign will also see the production of a documentary which will showcase the proceedings of the events and also make sure that the information gathered is well documented and preserved.

Graig highlighted to date, Sanlam has undertaken the cultural roadshow to five regions, visited 15 traditional leaders and engaged over 4 000 learners at 20 different schools with the support of 16 acclaimed Namibian musicians. 

Previously, the Sanlam My Culture My Life programme visited the Zambezi, Omusati, Kavango, Erongo and Kunene regions and has achieved tremendous success in those regions, with schools eager for the next visit.