Michael Doëseb, a 73-year-old man from Khorixas in the Kunene Region, has turned his home into a museum.

The 'house museum' has photographs and utensils of deceased Damara Kings and bottles with about 250 different traditional medicines from plants, collected over a span of 35 years.

Doëseb, who describes himself as a cultural enthusiast and researcher on Khoekhoegowab matters, is passionate about preserving culture and passing on traditional knowledge.

"I'm a researcher in the Khoekhoegowab books, Damara Nama, and I'm very keen. I'm so blessed. I wrote seven books. I started at the time of the Founding Father, Dr. Shafiishuna Nujoma. I also did research on traditional medicine and wrote recipe books on how to make traditional foods. The other one is about 12 poems, and I also make traditional costumes".

Doëseb says he has always been curious about how people from the past survived on plant medicine, so he decided to do his own research on how plants cure different diseases while collecting his own samples.
  
Doëseb's House Museum is, however, not equipped to safeguard or preserve these artifacts and records, and some of his collectibles are already breaking and falling apart due to wear and tear.

Doeseb's research books, which are over thirty years old, are also in a fragile state, with the ink having faded off the pages and the paper turning yellow.

His granddaughter has taken on the role of typist, transferring his research details onto her laptop.

Doëseb hopes for assistance in getting his research published.

He is proud of having assisted numerous scholars and academics with information related to his culture.

"But I'm old now, and one day if I pass away without support, then the people will take me six feet underground and this information will be gone because this culture must be transferred to the younger generations so that we can preserve it because it's very important that we keep to our cultures, but we must be united for that."

He shares some parting advice with the country's youth, urging them to stay away from drugs and rather uplift themselves by becoming educated.

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MICT Kunene