Kathindi wants education head office relocated from Oshana to Oshikoto

Oshikoto governor Sacky Kathindi has joined the chorus, echoing the sentiments of his predecessors who wanted the region's education directorate head office relocated from Ondangwa in the Oshana Region.Kathindi did not mince his words about the issue yesterday during his State of the Region Address (SORA) in Omuthiya.Whilst recognising the outstanding performance the region achieved in last year’s Grade 11 results, Kathindi tore into the matter of the education regional office.“Even though I have proudly reported on the good academic achievement by the Oshikoto directorate of Education, it is saddening that the directorate continues to operate outside the region in Ondangwa some 90km away from the regional capital, Omuthiya,” Kathindi said.“The location of the directorate offices outside the region hampers effective and efficient service delivery while also depriving Omuthiya Town of economic growth.”“The relocation of the directorate offices to Omuthiya is long over-due. The regional leadership is committed to ensure that the Directorate of Education offices are brought to Oshikoto region.”Roundtable discussionKathindi also said that last month he led a high-level regional delegation to Windhoek for a roundtable discussion with the education minister and the management team on the matter. “I am happy to report that the ministry supports and the consensus is that arrangements must be made for the relocation to take place,” he said.Kathindi is not the first leader to complain about this issue. Regional directors and former governors have been making the same call, yet the status quo remains unchanged.Among those who made the call at the time was former Oshikoto governor Henok Kankoshi, who, in his 2018 state of the region address, stressed the importance of the education office within the region.Some of the challenges at the time, which persist, include the long distances officials have to travel to Ondangwa, as well as the education ministry's substantial expenditure on subsistence and travel (S&T) costs.Classrooms are a bigger priorityLast year, when Namibian Sun inquired about the matter, the ministry stated that, due to a lack of funding, it faces several challenges, particularly regarding the construction of classrooms, which is deemed more pressing.“The ministry faces a great challenge of funding, particularly as regards its development budget,” the ministry responded then.“Allocation of financial resources is done at the back of competing and urgent needs of curriculum attainment, where administration needs often come second,” it explained.“We are currently still battling a huge backlog in the delivery of classrooms and we have capital projects that have been in the books for a long time but cannot take off the ground due to limited funds.”“We acknowledge that the greater distance between the regional office and its service area negatively affects service delivery and are continuously restructuring our competing priorities to respond fairly to all needs.”kenya@nmh-hub.com.na

Kathindi wants education head office relocated from Oshana to Oshikoto

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-02

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Kathindi wants education head office relocated from Oshana to Oshikoto

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-02

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