Nyumbu M.N

Making a living in Kavango Region

Kavango region is one of the Namibian regions with high annual rainfalls, good pasture land for farming and has very fertile soil.Namibia is a developing country which is still trying to strengthen its economy therefor its trying to find ways to resolve its current problems of high unemployment rate , which has recently increased to 51.2%,due to high rate of un skiiled people and lack of jobs for everyone its.It has been very difficult for the unemployed people to make a living, specifically for those who live in villages. This is because; everything is becoming very expensive on a daily basis which has increased poverty in this part of the country. Therefore, my concentration is on how the Kavango people. try to overcome these challenges in their everyday life.

Most people in Kavango villages survive through subsistence farming and herding, where they plough their land with cattle or donkeys to cultivate on small pieces of land. These farmers grow crops such as Mahangu, beans, watermelon, nuts, maize, millet, sugar cans, mutete, pumpkins and sweet potatoes. Once all crops are harvested they are stored in hats and drums, then the mahangu is pounded by girls and women almost every week as flour while, men and boys go hunting or catching fish and also look after live stocks. If the output is more than what is needed, the farmers sell the surplus in order to purchase something they may need for instance cloths, blankets, toiletries and shoes. But most importantly, they would pay for their children’s tuition fees and keep the remaining money saved, in terms of emergencies like sickness and even death expenses.

During some of the years the farmers experience dry season, which eventually leads to low harvest people in villages face hard times of poverty. They may ask the government to intervene and provide assistance; but it usually takes long time for their requests to be granted. However they do not just wait for miracles to happen while they die of hunger, they try their best to struggle for something to put in their stomach, while for the people who live in villages near the Kavango river aslo known asOkavango river, like Tondoro,Matende, kapako, Ruhuga, Masare,Nyangana just to name a few, catch fish to eat or either sell to buy what they may need. They also cut grass near the river known as marenge, used to build traditional house and also cut timber to creat income.

Moreover, people living in villages that are far away from the Kavango river like Ncaute, Mayongora, Epingiro ,Mururani and Ncamagoro also known as Mile 30, people in these villages make different art craft from wood such as: animals Bowls, hoes, traditional axes. They also make wood tables, chairs and drums made of cattle skin and wood. These products are later sold near road sides, towns like Okahandja and also at the South African border. For the women, girls, boys and even men who do not have the skills to produce this product, usually collect traditional fruits such metu and maguni also known as monkey lemons to eat and create income. During summer, they usually cut a unique grass called Nangondwe. The grass is expensive and more in demand than other grass available, as it needed for making lodges huts. It is often sold to business people, who use it to build restaurants, guest houses and loge resorts.

External Reference links

• Kavango [4]
• Kavango Dry Season[5]
• Fishing from Wato[6]
• Pounding Mahangu[7]
• Kavango river at Tondoro[8]
• NPN Newsletter 2011[9]