A Namibian town has once again secured a place in the finals of the popular kykNET Kwêla Dorp van die Jaar competition.

Last year, Rehoboth represented Namibia and finished in second place. This year, the honour has been passed on to Gobabis, which has been selected as Namibia's representative in the 2026 competition.

Owner of Megasave Gobabis, Gerri Mostert, expressed his excitement about the selection, stating, "We are fortunate to have been chosen. We honestly didn’t expect to be selected, so we feel incredibly lucky and grateful."

The annual competition celebrates towns that excel in community spirit, tourism appeal, and effective management and maintenance. 

It offers participating towns the opportunity to showcase what makes them unique. Namibians have until 20 July to cast their votes and help Gobabis bring the title home.

"There are eight more towns, most of them in South Africa, so we are competing with South Africa. They look at the town, the streets, and how the municipality is managing it; they also interview a few people. They look at the cultures and the people; that is what the town is about…the people."

Mostert shares the plans they have for the town if they win this year's competition.

"The prize is N$1 million, and we can use it for the town, so we have got a plan. We want to invest it into a rubbish dump and make it better, where we can offload the rubbish and recycle and just make the town more beautiful."