Junior legislators told to fight drug, alcohol abuse

VIice president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has urged junior legislators to influence their peers to steer clear of drug and alcohol abuse.

She was speaking at the opening of the third Junior National Council (JNC) session in Windhoek yesterday.

The vice president said junior legislators should strive to promote good moral, ethical and professional values expected of reasonable lawmakers.

“As lawmakers of your kind, influence your peers to distance themselves from social behaviours such as drug and alcohol abuse, and those which would lead them to become victims of teenage pregnancy – all of which have a detrimental effect on your education,” she said.

Nandi-Ndaitwah said a knowledge-based society can only be achieved when pupils, teachers and parents are taking education seriously.

She said academic and training qualifications alone cannot produce successful and productive individuals.

The government is striving to provide a favourable learning environment to pupils and students to foster acquiring critical thinking, creative and problem-solving skills.

A current challenge, she said, is to ensure that the education system is not only responsive to the current needs of society, but also anticipates the demands of the future.

With the recent development of new green hydrogen, oil and gas industries, Nandi-Ndaitwah said the government is compelled to equip Namibian children with the knowledge, skills and values necessary to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

“This means embracing a holistic approach to education that goes beyond the mere acquisition of literacy and academic knowledge,” she said.

Nandi-Ndaitwah further said Namibian boys are lagging behind in education, particularly at post-secondary and tertiary education level.

“This situation is not healthy for national development and should not be allowed to continue. Efforts must be made to ensure more attention is given to boys to have the same attention as given to girls,” she said.

Meanwhile, Chinese ambassador to Namibia Zhao Weiping, speaking at the same event, said the JNC is a great platform for Namibian young people to learn about Namibia’s political mechanism.

“The Chinese embassy is very glad to have sponsored the JNC since last year.

We will continue to provide our support every year in future,” he said.

Weiping said China-Namibia relations are a “perfect” combination of traditional friendship, common interests and growth potential.

“As good friends and close development partners, our two countries will continue to uphold the banner of South-South cooperation, and deepen practical cooperation in extensive areas, which I believe would certainly bring more benefits to our two peoples, including the youths of both countries,” Weiping said.