Oshana governor Hofni Iipinge has issued a directive to stakeholders, saying no funds should be returned to the Treasury at the end of the financial year.
Iipinge made this statement during a high-level engagement with all regional heads of public institutions at Oshakati on Wednesday.
“I want to make it categorically clear that no funds allocated to Oshana Region must be returned to the Treasury due to poor planning, lack of coordination, or negligence,” he said.
He added that if one ministry or agency fails to implement its budgeted activities, the entire region suffers, and ultimately, the people are the ones who bear the brunt.
Iipinge stressed that he expects everyone to plan ahead, work closely with head offices, expedite procurement processes, and remove internal bottlenecks that delay project execution.
He noted that the Oshana Regional Council is operating within the framework of the 2025/2026 financial year and has received a total medium-term expenditure framework budget allocation of N$357 million across all sectors and ministries operating within the region.
“This allocation is the financial expression of the government’s commitment to address the developmental needs of our region,” he added.
He emphasised that it is a call to action and a test of institutional responsiveness and managerial competence.
“We cannot afford business as usual, and like our president consistently says, we are too few to be poor with all the resources in the country,” he said.
Iipinge said they are duty-bound to ensure that every dollar allocated to the Oshana region is spent efficiently, transparently and within the allocated financial year.
He stressed that the era of unspent budgets and the return of funds to the Treasury must come to an end.
According to the governor, this practice is not only counterproductive, but it also undermines development, delays service delivery and erodes public trust in institutions.
