‘Natural resources not for personal gain’

Environment, forestry and tourism ministry staff members have been warned against the utilisation of natural resources for personal gain and gratification.Executive director Teofilus Nghitila made the remarks in his end-of-year statement.“Not only is this a criminal offence which may lead to your arrest and conviction, but also seriously contradicts our principles, values and policies.”Nghitila said many of the ministry’s staff members work under very precarious and challenging circumstances with danger imminent while attending to their daily duties, such as human-wildlife conflict management, patrols, law enforcement and forest management, amongst a long list of other important duties.The limited availability of resources compounds the difficulties the ministry and its staff are faced with, he said.Nghitila, however, reminded staff members of their responsibility contained in the constitution.It urges the maintenance of Namibia’s ecosystems, essential ecological processes and biological diversity and the utilisation of living natural resources on a sustainable basis for the benefit of all Namibians, both present and future.Proud recordNghitila further said the ministry has done remarkably well in managing wildlife resources.“Namibia has a proud conservation record, which is recognised internationally.”This reputation rests partly on conservation outside parks, other conservation areas and communal land, he said.“It rests on the country&#039;s commitment to the conservation of biodiversity through the establishment and management of protected areas.”Nghitila added that Namibia’s national parks are managed well, with continuous maintenance done on water infrastructure for both people and game, tourist roads, ablution facilities and fences, amongst others.According to him, the ministry is committed to providing decent accommodation or housing for staff members based in national parks.Conducive accommodationNghitila said with support from development partners such as Millennium Challenge Account Namibia, German development bank KfW and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the ministry established conducive accommodation and office blocks to enhance the morale of staff to better manage national parks.During the 2023/2024, the ministry completed the construction of a park station at Gobabeb consisting of eight units and the construction of a park station at Sesriem, also consisting of eight units as well as a three-bedroom house, large ablution block, new service building, new office building and renovation of three houses.At Skeleton Coast, it completed the upgrading of houses, offices and related infrastructure at the Mowe Bay, Cape Cross and Ugabmund stations.Meanwhile, the construction of a new station at Springbokwasser was finalised.Through the ministry’s development budget, it also finalised the construction of the Omaruru office in February, he said.

‘Natural resources not for personal gain’

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-09

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‘Natural resources not for personal gain’

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-09

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