Expo venue not strategically located

HELAO NAFIDI – Exhibitors who participated in the 2007 Helao Nafidi Business Expo have expressed dissatisfaction with the venue and demanded that the town council pick a more convenient spot next time.

Some of the exhibitors told Nampa that they did not receive a satisfactory number of customers because the venue of the expo was outside the town’s popular business centre, Oshikango. “If there is no appropriate site at Oshikango, why couldn’t the town council find a site in the Ohangwena settlement, which is another popular business centre of the town?” exhibitors whom Nampa spoke to demanded to know.The expo venue, Expo Recreation Park, is located some five kilometres from both Oshikango and Ohangwena.Insufficient electricity and water supplies, limited toilet facilities and shade for informal trade were some of the concerns expressed by the exhibitors.However, most of them expressed satisfaction with the security arrangements at the expo.Exhibitors said they experienced no criminal activities or disturbances at their stands during the course of the expo.Approached for comment, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Helao Nafidi town, Christian Shivolo, indicated that plans were already underway to bring about improved services and infrastructure at the Expo Recreation Park.”No one can succeed in isolation, therefore we want the expo to be a collective endeavour and the community to take ownership of it,” Shivolo said, adding that the council planned to source out the organisation of the expo to an independent organisation.One of the organisers of the expo, Tangeni Nghaamwa, told Nampa that no appropriate site could be found at Oshikango or Ohangwena.The Expo Recreation Park was therefore established at Omafo village, where there was enough space.The 2007 Helao Nafidi Business Expo, which began on October 26, ended on Sunday and it attracted 176 exhibitors from across the country.Nampa”If there is no appropriate site at Oshikango, why couldn’t the town council find a site in the Ohangwena settlement, which is another popular business centre of the town?” exhibitors whom Nampa spoke to demanded to know.The expo venue, Expo Recreation Park, is located some five kilometres from both Oshikango and Ohangwena.Insufficient electricity and water supplies, limited toilet facilities and shade for informal trade were some of the concerns expressed by the exhibitors.However, most of them expressed satisfaction with the security arrangements at the expo.Exhibitors said they experienced no criminal activities or disturbances at their stands during the course of the expo.Approached for comment, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Helao Nafidi town, Christian Shivolo, indicated that plans were already underway to bring about improved services and infrastructure at the Expo Recreation Park.”No one can succeed in isolation, therefore we want the expo to be a collective endeavour and the community to take ownership of it,” Shivolo said, adding that the council planned to source out the organisation of the expo to an independent organisation.One of the organisers of the expo, Tangeni Nghaamwa, told Nampa that no appropriate site could be found at Oshikango or Ohangwena.The Expo Recreation Park was therefore established at Omafo village, where there was enough space.The 2007 Helao Nafidi Business Expo, which began on October 26, ended on Sunday and it attracted 176 exhibitors from across the country.Nampa