Aroab Community received learning and development centre
The new Aroab Community Learning and Development Centre (CLDC) was officially handed over at the Oosterheim Combined School in Aroab, Keetmanshoop Rural Constituency earlier this month.
The centre was funded by the Japanese government through their Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP).
The Principal of the school, Ingrid Coetzee, took it upon herself to initiate the creation of meaningful opportunities for the youth to develop their skills and she collaborated with the Department of Life-Long Learning, Arts and Culture and the Directorate of Adult Education within the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture to approach the Embassy of Japan to solicit its cooperation in this endeavor.
It is against this background that the Japanese government extended a grant of around N$1,050,000 for building a brand new small-scale centre consisting of a multipurpose hall, a seminar room, two offices adjoined by a storeroom and reception which serves as a small library or reference corner.
The centre also includes an ablution facility for ladies, gentlemen and disabled persons is also an integral part of the new building.
Deputy Executive Director of, Department of Life-Long Learning in the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture, Gerard Vries said the inauguration of the centre in Aroab will be a first step in ushering in opportunities for the communities in its catchment area to access learning and skills for self-reliance and sustainability. “I am optimistic that this small step will reverberate for generations to come,” added Vries.
Director of the Directorate of Adult Education in the Ministry, Mzingisi Gqwede said the Aroab CLDC will allow the community to make the most of the opportunity so that everyone in this community can benefit from it to the fullest extent possible and given the global economic headwind that is currently being experienced, the timing of the launch of the CLDC could not have been better.
“We would like to extend our most heartfelt gratitude to the people of Japan, through their Embassy in Namibia, for illustrating the importance of genuine concern and friendship, as well as for continuing to work together on a variety of levels of government. We would like to express our gratitude to our friend in Japan for their kind support in establishing a centre at Aroab in addition to many other bilateral cooperation projects,” said Gqwede.
Ingrid Coetzee said when she was first assigned to Aroab, she was concerned about the number of out-of-school and unemployed adolescents killing time at street corners. “I am overjoyed that we were able to devise a strategy to create a promising future for children with the work that we do ourselves.
The CLDC will serve as a focal point for our community and will also be of assistance to learners attending Oosterheim Combined School before and after school as well as during the examination time. It is a solution that benefits everyone in every way,” added Coetzee.
According to Chief Education Officer, of Adult Education and Life-Long Learning, Seraphine Hangue said they would like to start their activities with hands-on training in income-generating skills such as small-scale livestock farming, agriculture, baking, etc. as identified by the community.
“We can hardly wait to kick start our first course,” said Hangue.
The Oosterheim Combined School is the sixtieth school that the Japanese have aided in creating infrastructure on the school grounds.
