John Muyamba 

MATENDE – A group of young people have pooled resources to assist a 48-year-old destitute woman, who has been living in a worn-out structure at Matende village in Kapako constituency of Kavango West, with a decent place to call home. 
The group of young men, who work as volunteers for Red Cross Namibia, stumbled upon the impoverished woman while on official duty in the area, where they handed out food through various health centres. 
At Matende, they came across Martha Hamusira after a community member had alerted them about her situation. 

“She doesn’t receive any social grant, neither does she possess official documents that she could use to register for the drought relief programme. She was living in a hut that is falling apart and we decided to put our heads together to see what we can do for her,” said Antonio George, one of the young men who assisted the woman. 

“We looked at her situation and it touched us; we got her some food, as she was also suffering from malnutrition. She could barely walk, and we said ‘let us help her’, so we decided to build for her a brick-structured room where she can live safely.” 

Hamusira said she was grateful for the support. 

“I am grateful for what they have done for me; I don’t know how I would have survived the next rainy season, as my hut doesn’t look good – and I couldn’t afford to rebuild it. I really can’t thank them enough,” she said. 
The room was constructed at a cost of N$12 000. 

The seven sponsors used their allowance to build the structure.

- jmuyamba@nepc.com.na