A 46-year-old wood carver, Isaac Ndumba, and 8 other families crafted 'Ndjamba' – an elephant crafted from wood to the exact size of a real-life elephant.

The move was done to create awareness around their work and also promote the town of Okahandja, where the wooden elephant is located.

Meet Ndjamba, a real-size elephant woodcraft – the brainchild of 8 families who sell crafts at Okahandja. 

8 years ago, this group came up with an idea to create something unique for their market, where they spend most of their time selling craft items to tourists passing through Okahandja.

"The reason we decided to make this is because the customers used to say that our staff are always the same. We should come make something unique that will inspire people, and every time we thought, 'What great things can we do?' Then we tried to make metals, but it was everywhere. But then we decided we could make something that is very big. The customers will stop and come take pictures and after that go in the shops and see if they can buy the small crafts, and this one is also for sale," explained Ndumba.

Ndumba said there were times they thought they would not finish crafting 'Ndjamba' or accomplishing their mission, as the wood came from far and needed to be handled with cranes. 

Although it was carved only with hands, the hard work and determination to upgrade their market was their end goal.

"It is made of wood. As you can see, this one is different from this wood, and the other one is the same wood. It was put together from the head; it is having this colour. We put varnish and wood glue on so that if there are insects, they can die, and for it to last longer outside. Of course we had challenges; everyone had their own work to do, but we tried to set up days on when to work on Ndjamba."

Ndumba hopes that one day there will be someone interested in providing a permanent home for Ndjamba.