Aroab a beacon of hope

• PATIENCE SMITHAROAB, a village of about 5 000 residents, is viewed by many as an example of good governance in the //Karas region and beyond.

In 2013, the Aroab Village Council (AVC) received a clean audit report, and is said to have one of the best administrative staff in the country.

During a visit there last week, Nampa discovered there are no shacks in this tidy town. The village also boasts a sparkling medium-sized swimming pool that is in use for six months of the year.

It further emerged during a sit-down with AVC chief executive officer Elsa Laubscher that all 500 households are connected to the village’s sewer, water and electrical network.

That means all residents have running water, toilets and electricity at their brick homes. A number of the houses were built under the Build Together Programme, and allocated to people who previously resided in shacks.

Although unemployment is high and the village finds it difficult to collect the necessary revenue for services from residents – as is the case in most of the country – the AVC has managed to implement development projects and remain well within its operational budget.

Laubscher said it only makes sense to pay creditors and bulk suppliers first.

“You can only spend what you have. Other village councils say they want to come here for best practices from us, but the truth is that we can all learn from each other,” she noted.

Laubscher said the secret to the village’s success is that it has good administration in place.

“We are lucky; the administrative officers here at the council know what they are doing, and the staff also has good working relations with the councillors.”

Laubscher, once reportedly referred to by former deputy minister of local government and housing Jerry Ekandjo as “the country’s most sought-after CEO”, has been at the helm of the village administration for the last 10 years.

The council is made up of two Swapo Party councillors, two DTA of Namibia councillors and one Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) councillor.

Recently, the village received the 2015 Best Rural Award in the Centres of Excellence in Local Government (COE) category out of 36 councils, from Gender Links Namibia. It was also honoured with the Good Governance Award at the Association of Local Authorities in Namibia congress in June.

According to Laubscher, the local authority tries to implement programmes with a commitment to achieve gender equality.

The AVC derives additional income from accommodation facilities it set up; a brick-making project; sheep farming; and a vegetable garden to help sustain the village financially.

Although a few residents Nampa spoke to referred to the AVC as “the richest village council with no heart for the community and no job creation”, Laubscher said the authority tries by all means to employ locals in council projects.

“In the past, we encountered problems through employing local people.

But the council believes in the philosophy of creating local jobs wherever possible to help ease poverty in our village.

And because unemployment is high here, we try by all means to negotiate with the community on payments for services.

We’ve taken the route of leniency, and always encourage them to make realistic arrangements before we resort to cutting off supplies.”

The village council receives an annual government subsidy of around N$800 000 for its operations, and N$1 500 000 for capital projects.

At the moment, the AVC is busy with a National Planning Commission-funded upgrade of an existing road to a 2,5 kilometre tar road, and is engaging with a South African-based private company which wishes to establish a large mall at the village.

Aroab is nearly 170 kilometres south-east of Keetmanshoop, and 40 kilometres away from the South African border.

The next project at the village will be a N$7 million extension project of the sewerage ponds, Laubscher enthused.

One of the future plans of the council is to build a lodge for further income and local job opportunities, and to bring Aroab village closer to being declared a town.

The 61-year-old Laubscher’s contract with the village expires next February, but she hopes to get a renewal.

– Nampa