4| INFORMANTÉ
14 November - 20 November 2013
Oranjemund on track independence
Oranjemund Town Council
C/o 8th & 12 Avenue
Box 178 Oranjemund
Tel: 063-23 3500 / Fax: 063-23 3501
E-mail: [email protected]
THE final take-over of the Oranjemund town by the Town
Council is in progress and the latest development is the approval
of the town’s valuation roll.
The town was proclaimed on 1 August 2011 following the
proclamation of a 90km access road linking Rosh Pinah with
Oranjemund as a national road.
Entrance at Oranjemund
Atlantic Ocean south of Oranjemund
Town Council CEO, Paul Nghiwilepo
“We are now
in the process of identifying which of the properties would remain with Namdeb,
while the council will take over the
other ones. The installation of water and
electricity meters will also be done early
next year, so that the residents can start paying
for the services rendered to them by the council,”
the acting chief executive officer, Paul Nghiwilepo,
said.
In the meantime the council received an amount of
N$8,8 million under the Targeted Intervention Programme for Employment and Economic Growth (TIPEEG)
to service some erven at the town.
“Our priority will be to provide at least 30 serviced erven to
contractors that would be involved in the development of the
Kudu Gas Field.
This is a major project and a government priority, and we have
to also treat it in such a way. This erven should be ready by June
next year. But in the meantime we will start as soon as possible with
the supply of water and electricity to virgin erven at the town,” said
Nghiwilepo.
According to him, there is a big demand for residential and business
erven, and therefore a big responsibility rest on the shoulders of the
Town Council to come up with serviced erven as soon as possible.
“We are also inviting investors to make use of this opportunity to
invest in the town. There is a need for modern infrastructure such as hotels, a possible waterfront, adventure companies, Private schools, hiking
trails and other retail businesses. As our slogan says we would like to
cultivate a community and we can do that faster more successfully if we
embrace “new comers”, said Nghiwilepo.
The council also started with the registering of applicants for the buildtogether programme this week. “This will enable us to determine the interest the people have in this programme, and then we can plan ahead for
next year. A budget in this regard would then be laid before the Ministry
of Regional and Local Government, Housing and Rural Development
to obtain funds to launch the programme at Oranjemund. We also still
have to do our town planning, but first we have to get this other issues
in place,” said Nghiwilepo.
The council also received some money from the Road Fund
Administration, (RFA), to enable it to maintain the roads at the town.
Another exciting development for Oranjemund is the establishing of a maritime and mining museum. Discussions between the
council, the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture and Namdeb are
underway to make the Oranjemund Shipwreck Collection discovered in 2008 part of this museum.
The shipwreck is the archaeological remains of an early 17th
Century Portuguese trading ship, and is described as one
of the most important archeological discoveries globally.
Although the ship itself was badly destroyed, researchers
suggest that the ship was a large, sturdy ship used by the
Portuguese on their Indian routes, which had been buried in the sand for more than 500 years.
A treasure trove of thousands of gold coins,
bronze cannons, tonnes of copper, and more
than 50 elephant tusks makes up the collection found on the shipwreck. Coins date
back to 1525. Some of the copper ingots
were inscribed with the Fugger family crest, a prominent family from
Augsburg, Germany, who invested in the Portuguese
shipping trade.
Workers repairing a street at Oranjemund
Sir Ernest Oppenheimer bridge between Oranjemund and Alexander Bay.