The Capricorn Foundation has approved a further investment of N$1.2 million for the RuralRevive initiative at Maltahöhe, enabling it to strengthen the systems, infrastructure and organisational capacity needed to secure and scale the gains already achieved.
The funding, approved by the foundation’s board in May, will support a 12-month consolidation phase of the RuralRevive.
RuralRevive, an initiative of the Wolwedans Foundation’s AridEden Vision 2050, aims to build a locally rooted, desert-based economy by integrating horticulture, waste management, logistics, skills development and community participation into a single model.
The Capricorn Foundation was the first local private sector corporate donor to support the initiative, investing N$1 million in 2023 and a further N$1.17 million in 2025.
With this newly approved investment, the foundation’s total support now rises to N$3.37 million, underscoring its confidence in a partnership that is demonstrating how systems-based rural development can create durable social, economic, and environmental value.
The newly approved funding will focus on consolidating and strengthening core work packages that are already operational.
These include project management and organisational development; infrastructure upgrades for the Waste Management Facility at Marauns Garage; the establishment of the Desert Runner Terminal for fresh produce logistics; the Andrewville Community Hub; and the expansion of the horticulture campus and seedling nursery.
The investment responds directly to the recommendations of an independent external evaluation completed in March, which confirmed that RuralRevive has established a functioning ecosystem of interdependent platforms and identified consolidation as the next critical phase for long-term sustainability.
“We are immensely grateful and happy to see the extension of a fruitful relationship and collaboration with the Capricorn Foundation now entering its third year. Capricorn’s ongoing commitment has been instrumental in allowing RuralRevive to move from concept to implementation, and now into consolidation,” chairperson of the RuralRevive Initiative and Wolwedans Foundation, Stephan Brückner, says.
“And importantly, becoming an independent Section 21 since November 2025. In this together for the long run, the grant will be used to solidify and scale a number of active work packages.
RuralRevive – a vision for building more sustainable and inclusive tourism and conservation economies in south-western Namibia – benefits local communities and Mother Nature,” he says.
Capricorn executive Marlize Horn says the latest investment aligns with the Capricorn Foundation’s Economic Advancement focus area and contributes to the eighth Sustainable Development Goal on decent work and economic growth, as well as the fourth goal on skills development.
“By supporting RuralRevive’s consolidation phase, the foundation is helping to anchor a resilient local economy in one of Namibia’s arid regions while reinforcing a model that holds strong potential for replication in other rural communities,” Horn says.
