30 new tour guides graduate

A tour guide is one of the most important professions in the tourism industry.Tourism minister Pohamba Shifeta said this at a graduation ceremony for tourism guides that took place over the weekend in the Kunene Region.The event witnessed the graduation of 30 tour guides from the Brandberg area and the Ombonde People’s Landscape in the Kunene and Erongo regions.“We have 30 newly qualified local tour guides for levels 1 and 2 accredited by Ongula Training Academy. The trainees will be further accredited with a level 3 Namibia Training Authority Tour Guiding qualification after completion of the training by the end of November 2023,” the minister said. Training local guides A biodiversity economy project, jointly implemented by the tourism ministry and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), promotes economic activities and businesses based on the sustainable use of biodiversity.This improves livelihoods in the target landscapes and provides incentives to local eco-entrepreneurs and communities for preserving biodiversity. The main value chains supported are nature-based tourism, crafts, digital value creation and wildlife-based value chains.On this basis, the project funded a capacity-building programme to train local tour guides in the Brandberg/Geopark and Ombonde landscapes. Shifeta said trained local tourist guides have enhanced opportunities for employment.Empower the youth The tourism ministry, in collaboration with the tourism private sector, academia and other training institutions, conducted a tour guide survey in May.The feedback revealed that more has to be done to train young Namibians to enter this profession, especially young women.Shifeta said additional capacity-building programmes such as devil’s claw training, crafts training and support for local eco-entrepreneurs’ campsite infrastructure developments are currently underway in Brandberg and Ombonde.“We are working hard to promote viable economic activities to improve livelihoods for the people who live in the landscapes.”Unique landscapes Shifeta said the Kunene and Erongo regions have a "high scope of tourism development because of their geology, vast open landscapes, desert-adapted iconic and charismatic wildlife and unique cultures.”He said the two regions are, however, situated in harsh and unprecedented climatic conditions where the availability of water remains an issue.Shifeta said the ministry, together with GIZ and other supporting organisations, is installing water infrastructure, such as boreholes, for some tourism campsite community owners.

30 new tour guides graduate

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Namibian Sun 2025-06-19

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30 new tour guides graduate

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Namibian Sun 2025-06-19

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