By Frederick Philander WINDHOEK Four representatives from two Namibian rural senior secondary schools on Saturday left for London on a week-long cultural exchange and partnership programme. The selected Namibian senior secondary schools that will represent the country at a partnering workshop under the auspices of the British Council in Namibia are Okahandja Secondary School and Dr Lemmer Secondary School at Rehoboth. “We are very excited and look forward to working together in the education field with our British counterparts. Topics to be discussed during the programme include the different cultures of our countries and twinning partnerships with two British schools,” said Christy Rispel, a teacher for many years at Okahandja Secondary School, before the group’s departure on Saturday in an interview. Rispel’s school will be partnering he Bowring Secondary School in London and Dr Lemmer Secondary school is set to twin up with Brookfield Secondary School, also in London. “I think this is a very much-needed educational exercise for both our countries to understand each other’s education systems and cultures better to the benefit of our learners, perpetually yearning for new educational information. It would make a lot of sense to me if and when practical exchanges between learners and teachers of our respective schools start hopefully within the next year,” said Rispel, a playwright specifically interested in British educational theatre. Schools from other African countries taking part in the programme include: Kenya, Nigeria, Botswana, Sierra Leone and Mozambique. “I am confident that we all will learn through this exercise and enrich ourselves with a broader educational vision,” said Rispel, the head of Afrikaans at the Okahandja school, who will be back in the country early next week.