An amount of N$1,600 might be someone's savings, but for 77-year-old Frans Geiseb, from Omatako Village in Otjozondjupa Region, the monthly old-age pension grant is more than a personal lifeline.

It is the only source of income sustaining a household of about 25 family members.

Unemployment has forced many residents of Omatako village in the Tsumkwe West Constituency to rely on selling firewood as their primary source of income to support their families.

Omatako is one of the villages in the constituency, pressed by unemployment.

The work is labour-intensive.

The Kavango West Region has introduced a number of projects to address socio-economic developments such as unemployment, poverty, food insecurity, and climate-related vulnerabilities, among others.

While some quarters celebrate Independence Day, more than two hundred people living on the outskirts of the Walvis Bay municipality dumpsite say they have little to celebrate as they continue to struggle for survival.

Corruption, inequality, and growing social divisions took center stage as President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah delivered a firm and reflective midnight address, marking Namibia’s 36th Independence Day.

Kunene Governor Vipuakuje Muharukua says high poverty levels, long walking distances, teaching staff shortages, and poor infrastructure are some of the key reasons for the region's continued poor performance in the Senior Secondary Certificate, Ordinary Level, and Advanced Subsidiary Level examinations.

It remains a challenge for the San community in Tsumkwe Constituency's ||Nhoma settlement to put bread and other basic necessities on the table.

A San family living in Otjinene says they continue to face underdevelopment and the harsh reality of poverty.

While they express gratitude for the government assistance they receive, they often find themselves with nothing to eat and unable to afford even their most basic needs.

With more families unable to afford decent funerals for their loved ones, the burden of sudden deaths is increasingly falling on households already struggling to make ends meet. 

The cost of mortuary fees and burial expenses has left many unable to lay their relatives to rest with dignity.

Poverty has been singled out as a main contributing factor to human trafficking.

This was mentioned during the commemoration of the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons at Kaenda in the Zambezi Region.