The Ministry of Sport Youth and National Service's Executive Director, Mbumba Haitengela, has clarified that the electricity and water bills for the Independence Stadium were paid on Wednesday afternoon before the power outage occurred.

The power outage resulted in the match between Orlando Pirates and Life Fighters being abandoned. However, Haitengela refuted claims and reports in the media suggesting that the Ministry owed N$400,000 to the City of Windhoek.

He stated that the outstanding balance was paid on Friday the 17th and again last Wednesday, erasing all debts.

Groot Aub residents say they no longer have confidence in the City of Windhoek to deliver services.

They now want to handle their own administration for faster development at the settlement.

Chief Jorro Eiseb of the |Khomanin Traditional Authority, who addressed the Groot Aub community, stated that the incorporation of the settlement into Windhoek defeats the purpose as the municipality hardly provides efficient services.

To date, the City of Windhoek has electrified 4,215 households in Windhoek's informal settlements.

This was revealed at the inauguration of the Informal Areas Electrification Project in Windhoek today.

These houses were electrified during the last five years of the previous 5-Year Electrification Plan 2017–2022, which lapsed during the last financial year 2022–2023.

The electrification project was funded by the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development and NamPower, with a combined capital investment of around N$45 million.

The City of Windhoek's employees are demanding a 10 percent salary and wage increment for 2023–24 to cope with the ever-increasing cost of living.

Protestors say necessities such as fuel and food have become costly while their salaries have remained stagnant for the past four years.

In addition, the city has also increased its rates and taxes by 4.5%, while the electricity rate went up by 8.6%.

Also on the list are free parking spaces, permanent appointments, a stop to outsourcing services while there is internal capacity, nepotism, and corruption.

The City of Windhoek remains unmoved by a recent petition delivered by the Katutura Residents Committee. The residents took to the streets a fortnight ago to air their frustrations with high utility bills and the municipality's use of Red Force to collect debt.

The Minister of Urban and Rural Development, Erastus Utoni, has urged local authority leaders to avoid political affiliation when carrying out their duties.

He made the call during a joint signing ceremony of the renewal and new cooperation agreements between the City of Windhoek and 16 other local authorities.

The areas of cooperation entail solid waste and sewerage management, human resources and capacity building, economic development, as well as land and housing.

Six primary and pre-primary schools in Windhoek that took part in a recycling competition were awarded cash prizes for their best recycling initiatives.

The award ceremony took place at Otjomuise Primary School.

The school recycling competition programme is an effort by the City of Windhoek to raise awareness and encourage behavioural and attitude change among the learners.

The programme targeted 45 schools in low-income and informal areas.

The City of Windhoek (CoW) has launched the Ebike4Windhoek pilot project as part of its effort to reduce carbon emissions and increase transport options. Non-motorised transport has an important role to play in reducing carbon dioxide emissions and greening the economy in the context of providing and promoting more sustainable transport options.

The City of Windhoek finds itself embroiled in a web of financial complexities, encompassing a loan default conundrum, a public-private partnership (PPP) scandal, and the revelation of a forged invoice linked to double-dipping.

The intricate interplay of these events has exposed the city to scrutiny over financial transparency, contractual compliance, and ethical governance.

Residents of Okapale in Windhoek's Goreangab informal settlement have been pleading for a taxi and bus rank for more than ten years now.

The residents say they are forced to walk a long distance to the nearest bus and taxi rank to get to school or work, this situation could easily expose them to potential criminal incidents and the vagaries of unfavourable weather conditions on occasion.

A meeting held in 2021 involving the councillor, NABTA, and the City of Windhoek instilled hope among the residents.

However, to date, no tangible actions have been taken.