One of the candidates gunning for a councillor position at Katima Mulilo Urban Constituency in the upcoming polls, Shepherd Nyambe, said that his manifesto focus is aligned with the National Development Plan – NDP6.
Nyambe, who is an independent candidate, launched his manifesto at a star rally over the weekend at Katima Mulilo's informal settlement, Macaravani West.
He stated that he plans to leverage the NDP6 to ensure that residents within the Katima Mulilo Urban Constituency become primary beneficiaries of that development agenda.
"My manifesto is based on opening up the Katima Mulilo Urban Constituency for business and business growth and expansion because that's how we understand that when there is business operating within the constituency or within the town or within a specific area, opportunity is created for our young people, our men and women; where there is job creation, there are entrepreneurship opportunities where partnerships are established."
His manifesto also touched on bylaws and policies, with Nyambe emphasising residents' need for housing, water and sanitation, and land.
His aim is to strengthen stakeholder engagements with the local town council and regional council.
"Therefore, when I become councillor, I'm going to ensure that all these bodies come together to partner with CSOs because this is where the real voices of the people are heard. We partner with churches because the majority of the people in Katima Mulilo are Christians, and church is the easiest way to get to hear your voices and get input."
The other focus areas include addressing market issues for vendors and youth empowerment.
According to Nyambe, he will place special emphasis on female vendors and provide a better market to complement and relieve pressure from the existing Katima Mulilo open market.
"We understand that the Katima Mulilo open market is no longer enough for our community; it's no longer enough for our marketers and salespeople that are taking care of families out there, and pillar number five is of course focused on youth empowerment, for which I am pledging to construct a youth campus which will have a library, a computer centre, and more importantly a studio."
This, he said, is to accommodate the many creatives in the town and region, whose talent mostly ends up wasted due to lack of resources, resulting in alcohol and drug abuse.