Declare youth unemployment national disaster – Venaani

Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) president McHenry Venaani has called for youth unemployment to be declared a national disaster.

This follows a “candid and tell-all” meeting with president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, he says.

Speaking after the meeting this week, Venaani said it addressed a wide range of socio-economic and political challenges facing Namibia, with unemployment emerging as the most urgent national concern.

“The main purpose of the meeting was to address pertinent socio-economic issues affecting the country,” Venaani said.

“We pushed the government to declare youth unemployment a national disaster and to establish a dedicated task force to deal with it.”

The consultation forms part of the president’s ongoing engagements with political parties aimed at strengthening national dialogue on governance and economic reform.

Venaani warned that rising youth unemployment poses a serious risk to national stability if left unresolved.

“There is nothing more urgent,” he said. “Young people have qualifications and degrees, but no jobs. One day they are going to revolt if extraordinary steps are not taken.”

He said unemployment lies at the centre of multiple social challenges, including housing shortages, poverty and limited access to basic services.

“You cannot stimulate the economy without creating jobs,” he said.

“Too few people are working, and that weakens the entire economy.”

Venaani said the PDM presented policy proposals focused on expanding agriculture as the fastest pathway to mass employment.

He said Namibia is underutilising perennial water sources in regions such as the Zambezi, Kavango and Kunene, while neighbouring countries extract significantly more water for agricultural production.

“We must revolutionise agriculture through irrigation, desert farming and agro-processing,” he said.

“The agricultural sector can absorb entry-level jobs faster than any other sector at this stage.”

The party also raised concerns over bureaucratic hurdles that discourage investment.

“It takes too long to register companies. There is too much red tape, and investors are shying away,” Venaani said.

He confirmed that the proposed petroleum bill also featured prominently during discussions, with the PDM insisting on stronger parliamentary oversight.

“We told the president clearly that if the parliament does not have oversight over the petroleum bill, we cannot support it in its current form,” he said.

Other issues raised included housing shortages, land access reform, offshore mining security, defence matters, agricultural expansion and longstanding concerns involving former exiles and so-called struggle veterans.

The meeting, initially scheduled for one hour, reportedly lasted nearly three hours.

“It was very candid, very national and very patriotic,” Venaani said.

“We raised issues exactly as we see them.”

Asked whether the engagement signals improved cooperation between the government and opposition parties, Venaani struck a cautious tone.

“The government has listened before, but implementation has often been lacking,” he said.

“However, this meeting felt different because we were truly listening to one another.”

He confirmed that both parties agreed to future engagements to expand discussions on national reforms.

As immediate interventions, Venaani proposed expanding apprenticeship programmes and enforcing youth participation requirements in government tenders.

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