Affirmative Repositioning leader Job Amupanda says a company set to benefit from the National Youth Development Fund (NYDF) has not been registered with the Business Intellectual Property Authority (Bipa).
Amupanda was speaking in parliament on Wednesday, where he sought answers from prime minister Elijah Ngurare.
Amupanda alleged that the company, which he did not reveal, could not be found anywhere in Bipa’s registrar books and was only registered on 18 September, after the 4 September application deadline, raising questions about its selection.
“This begs the question, if it never existed before the NYDF launch, how come after being registered it somehow qualified to be selected among the 42 companies.
“This is very problematic, and the line ministry needs to clarify how they missed this,” Amupanda said.
In response, Ngurare asked Amupanda to reveal the company’s name so the Ministry of Finance can investigate the matter urgently.
“As I said before at Gobabis, when I launched the fund, we cannot play with our youth, and no abuse will be allowed. We will follow this matter and look into it,” he said.
Ngurare explained that if the company in question was not found, it could be a glitch causing Bipa irregularities.
He explained that the 42 selected companies are part of the first pilot phase for the current financial year, with an injection of over N$14 million.
The NYDF, he said, is capitalised by N$257 million with the package set at N$500 million.
He also said there will be no political card requirement, adding that all youth qualify for the fund regardless of political affiliations.
Ngurare said although the category targets ages 18-35, those aged 35 to 40 may also benefit if found to possess the needed skills.
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