Being a High School learner in Namibia
It was a Monday morning the 14 November 2011 – I woke up early to leave for Rehoboth. Rehoboth is a town
of 21,000 inhabitants in central Namibia just north of the Tropic of Capricorn. Located on the B1 road, 90
kilometers south of the Namibian capital Windhoek, Rehoboth lies on a high elevation plateau with several
natural hot-water springs. It receives sparse mean annual rainfall of 240 millimeters (9.4 in), although in the
2010/2011 a record 731 millimeters (28.8 in) were measured. In 2005, it had a population of 21,378. Until the
19th century the area of the present day Rehoboth town was inhabited by Nama (Khoikhoi) groups who called
it ǃAnis meaning smoke; referring to the cloud of condensed water vapour hanging over the hot springs in the
morning.
The missionary Franz Heinrich Kleinschmidt of the German Rhenish Missionary Society named the place
Rehoboth in 1845, when a mission was established among the resident Nama (Khoikhoi). In 1864, the Nama
abandoned the area as a result of an attack by the Orlam Afrikaners.
In 1870, the Basters, who had migrated out of the Cape Colony in 1868 moved into the territory and were
granted permission to settle at Rehoboth by the participants of the peach conference of Okahandja on 23
September 1870. In a few years, the Basters were closely linked to the town of Rehoboth and became
identified as Rehoboth Basters or Rehobothers. The population increased rapidly from an initial number of 333
in 1870, 800 in 1874 and 1500 by 1885. The growing Baster population settled in the surrounding areas, which
would become known as the Rehoboth Gebiet meaning area.
In 1885, Baster Kaptein Hermanus van Wyk signed a 'Treaty of Protection and Friendship' with the German
Empire which permitted him to retain a degree of autonomy in exchange for recognising colonial rule.
Relations between Rehoboth and Germany remained close for more than twenty years but in 1914, following
the outbreak of World War I, Germany's use of Baster soldiers to guard South African prisoners - contrary to
the terms of their enlistment - led to armed revolt. German forces then attacked Rehoboth, committed
atrocities against Baster civilians and attacked refugees encamped upon the mountain of Sam Khubis, but,
despite repeated attacks and the use of superior weaponry, were unable to destroy the Basters' position. Next
day, the Germans retreated and Rehoboth's Baster community was reprieved.
Now at Rehoboth High school the students are all geared up at the assembly point where they are waiting for
the Minister of Education Dr Abraham Iyambo. The principal needed to get his staff organized it is not
everyday that one gets a visit from the Minister. So proper preparation was needed, his staff at the office
were briefed. Thus, they were very friendly smiling with me as I greeted them at the reception. Minister
Iyambo is one of the youngest Minister in Namibia and he is very vibrant and the learners eagerly wait for him
to address them and handover textbooks to the learners as they are about to write exams. I could see the
young students especially the short ones trying to secure a spot in front of the first places at the assembly
point. Receiving a textbook of your own for learners in Namibia is sometimes a luxury.
Before the Minister hands over the textbook he interacts with the learners, cracking a bit of jokes with them
and asking them some them general questions just to test their intelligence quotient (IQ). As, I stood in front
of these youngsters a lot of thoughts were running in my mind, of course reminiscing how my primary schools
years were by then and how I aspired to be a journalist, teacher or economist one day. I was trying to identify
an extrovert student, one who was not going to be afraid to speak her/his mind when I ask about the
challenges s/he faces as a student without the proper usage of a textbook when doing homework after school.
Namibian children especially those in public schools sometimes lacks the ability to express themselves so this
was really a challenge to choose who I could speak to, but anyway I had to give them time to decide whether
they are still interested in talking to me.
After spending 42-minutes at the scene and observing the learner’s body language as the Minister was
addressing them it was time to talk to the learner that I think could be able to give me her/is experience as
student at Rehoboth School.
Minister of Education Dr. Abraham Iyambo
Although Namibia has an enabling environment and good growth prospects, it has consistently had difficulties
meeting its development goals. Close to 35% of the population lives on less than US$1.00 per day, while nearly
56% lives on less than US$2.00 per day. Income inequalities are among the highest in the world and
unemployment is highest among the unskilled and youth. The shortage of skilled labour and the lack of
adequate and efficient education system play a key part in this scenario. In 2005, a World Bank report
commissioned by the government of Namibia, found that although enrolment and completion rates are
relatively high, most children leave school without the foundation skills and competencies. Although, the
national literacy rate is estimated at 82%; performance on a screening test recorded very low functional
literacy, even among middle and high school graduates.
In addition, 80% of children enter the 1st grade of primary education without the required level of learning
readiness and these children are also exposed to ineffective teaching. For example, 87% of primary school
teachers at national level were qualified to teach in 2001.
Several assessments have also found that, coupled with the lack of quality, there is also a shortage of books
and instructional material. Primary schools have an average book-to-student ratio of 2.6:1, compared with the
minimum norm of 5:1 for core subjects. This average is among the lowest in the Southern Africa region. A good
majority of schools, especially in rural areas, do not provide the required physical environment conducive to
teaching or learning. As such, 21% of primary and secondary schools have no permanent classrooms (World
Bank, 2005). The poor quality of education contributes to low internal efficiency and is manifested in high
student repetition and dropout rates.
Although the Government has invested heavily in education over the past decade, inequalities inherited at
independence persist. They are evident in the distribution of access, learning outcomes, and resource inputs.
The education and training systems therefore become weak instruments for facilitating poverty eradication,
and for reducing social inequalities.
Francina Mutilifa hopes to pursue her dream of becoming a lawyer, but as a 10th grader at Rehoboth High
School she is already facing a number of challenges. As I look through her delighted face the young girl is
determined to succeed in life regardless of the many challenges she is facing. Her school, located 91 km south
of Windhoek has never had enough textbooks for each student.
Francina, along with her classmates, is
sometimes rushed to do her homework in class. When textbooks are shared, students cannot take home a
book. Mostly, students have no choice but to write down questions to answer at home without using
textbooks as a reference.
Francina and her classmates at Rehoboth High School are not the only students who experience a lack of
learning materials. In Namibia, textbooks financing, procurement and distribution are common problems. Due
to a non-competitive procurement systems too much money is spent on too few books. The catalogue for
school books and other instruction materials has too many titles resulting in too many books on the market
which makes procurement less cost effective. Control over the ordering by schools and distribution is lacking
in the education system. Despite the millions spent each year on textbooks, there are serious shortages of
books and instructional materials in primary and secondary schools, in the rural areas but also at schools in
towns. While it is the objective of the Education and Training Sector Improvement Plan, known as ETSIP, to
have a textbook for each student in the Namibian school system, in some schools, at present up to seven
students share a book per subject. Sharing textbooks creates a difficult learning environment inside and
outside of the classroom.
One of the critical constraints to achieve poverty reduction through economic growth in Namibia, which is
MCA Namibia’s overall goal, is an inadequately educated and skilled workforce. In addressing this concern, the
US Government’s Millennium Challenge Corporation is investing USD145 million as part of the USD304.5
million five-year MCA Namibia Compact in the education sector. The funding is used to improve the quality of
the workforce in Namibia by enhancing the equity and effectiveness of basic, vocational, and tertiary
education and of technical skills. Improving access to and management of textbooks in primary and secondary
school is a prerequisite to enhancing the quality of learning, and is a vital ingredient in the education sector.. In
order to systematically address the root problems underpinning the delivery of high quality textbooks and
learning, the Textbook Activity in the MCA Namibia Compact will be rolled out in two phases. In a first step,
textbooks to primary and secondary are provided to students as soon as possible. Some 560,000 books were
distributed to 951 schools by mid 2010 with a further 130,000 books to follow in the next few months. The
second phase focuses on long-term sustainability, addressing identified flaws in the current Namibian textbook
management system. A Textbook Policy, adopted by Cabinet early in 2009, attempts to standardize textbook
procurement and distribution throughout the education sector. MCA Namibia is working closely with the
Ministry of Education to create the tools and skills necessary for the implementation of this policy.
The process has been and will continue to be highly consultative, with major stakeholders building consensus
on the new policies and procedures. The National Institute for Educational Development, the think tank for
Namibian education, is responsible for formulating the policy at the textbook development stage, and a Supply
Chain Management Unit will oversee all operational and logistical processes of the textbook supply chain. The
newly created and independent National Textbook Board will be a key advisory body on all aspects of national
textbook development.
Strong management and record keeping of learning materials are vital to ensure security, transparency and
fairness in the allocation of materials, which, in turn, are the foundations of trust in the system. Standardizing
and simplifying the current complicated procedures will help schools order the appropriate textbooks books at
the best prices, and have them delivered to the right place at the right time. A second round of textbook
distribution will eventually test the new procedures and systems.
Francina with her new Physcial Science textbook.
The impact of the first round of distribution can be seen on the face of Francina. As Francina holds her new
Physical Science textbook with pride. “I am very happy. At least now I will be able to do my homework and
pass with great marks” she remarked. “What excites me is having a textbook which I can take along and make
me understand better.” MCA Namibia wishes Francina and all the other students and teachers who received
books bought with the MCC funding happy and productive learning! The goal of Namibia’s MCA Compact is to
reduce poverty through economic growth in Education, Tourism, and Agriculture sectors. To accomplish the
Compact goal of increasing income, the MCA Namibia programme aims to achieve the following objectives,
increase the competence of Namibian workforce (knowledge, skills and attitude) and increase the productivity
of agriculture as well as non-agricultural enterprise in rural areas.
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