The City of Windhoek and the National Commission on Research, Science, and Technology (NCRST) have signed an agreement to establish a science, technology, and innovation centre at the UN Plaza Community Complex in Katutura.
The City of Windhoek has approved the renovation of the former restaurant building at UN Plaza to be developed into a science and innovation hub with access to educational resources.
The NCRST will manage the facility, which will serve as a place for students, entrepreneurs, young innovators and educators to collaborate.
The centre is expected to promote creative thinking, support the development of new technologies and encourage solutions to local challenges.
"Of course, the Envision Science Centre would probably not just be at its core a declaration; it is a community declaration that knowledge that is embedded in science and research meets us to the generation now and to the generation after," said City of Windhoek CEO Moses Matyayi.
The centre will have hands-on workshops, STEM programmes, economic revitalisation through innovation, social cohesion and participatory development.
Windhoek Mayor Sakarias Uunona elaborated on the importance of the Envision Science Centre. "Imagine a hub where schoolchildren from Khomasdal and Katutura experiment with sustainable agriculture technologies, learning to grow food in arid conditions, directly addressing food insecurity in our informal settlements. Picture young entrepreneurs prototyping solar-powered irrigation systems or AI-driven waste management tools, turning ideas into jobs that keep our youth off the streets."
The Chief Executive Officer of NCRST, Professor Anicia Peters, says the establishment of the Science, Technology, and Innovation Centre at UN Plaza in Katutura reflects efforts to strengthen youth skill development and promote job creation.
"For NCRST, it's very important that young people are inspired and equipped with relevant skills. Some of the scientists who are now in Namibia, who are now becoming older – maybe I should say wiser – are asking me, 'What are you doing about inspiring the next generation of scientists? Who's going to be their role models? What are we doing about these issues?' And this is what NCRST endeavours to do through the S.T.I.M.E. Centre. Innovators and entrepreneurs are supported to develop competitive solutions, research is translated into practical applications, and communities actively participate in the innovation landscape to co-create solutions."