The darling of agriculture tenders

Government contracts have powered the rise of his company, Uundenge Investments.

Its operations straddle construction, agriculture, and tourism.

Kandume has over the years kept a low profile, but Swapo’s political campaigns thrust him into the limelight.

He has appeared alongside minister of environment, forestry and tourism Pohamba Shifeta in various regions in Swapo’s ongoing campaigns.

Kandume says he is supporting Shifeta’s Swapo vice presidential campaign.

His proximity to Shifeta adds to the ongoing debate about the relationship between government officials and business people they are supposed to regulate.

In this case, Shifeta hand-picked Kandume’s company last year to exclusively transport travellers into the Namib Desert to Sossusvlei.

Now Kandume is a key figure in Shifeta’s campaign to become Namibia’s president.

“I chose to support Shifeta (for the Swapo vice president position),” the businessman told The Namibian this month.

Kandume has also established himself among the top echelons of Namibia’s political elite, including an agricultural partnership project with Swapo Party Youth League secretary and member of parliament Ephraim Nekongo.

Kandume was involved in a land deal that included government officials who are supposed to supervise his work.

He has a reputation of not completing agriculture projects, but co-owns a farm with the former permanent secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform and now NamWater’s chief executive officer, Abraham Nehemia, and the agriculture ministry’s director of planning and business, Mesag Mulunga.

Government officials have in the past complained about Kandume dominating agriculture ministry tenders.

It’s a rapid rise for a man who said he started out his professional life as a cleaner.

At the age of 37 he has been involved in at least N$700 million in tenders in the last decade.

Kandume is unapologetic about his ties to Shifeta.

“How many business people who are in other candidates’ camps and linked to government projects have you written about? The questions are meant to decampaign someone,” he said.

Shifeta yesterday insisted he only has individual supporters “who volunteered their time and effort towards my campaign”.

THE NAMIB DESERT DEAL

The Namibian reported last year that Shifeta had hand-picked Kandume’s company Sky Eye Hospitality and Tours to exclusively transport travellers into the Namib Desert’s renowned Sossusvlei area.

The businessman estimates that deal to be worth around N$280 million.

Shifeta’s decision to award Kandume the deal was criticised by the state-owned Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) and other tourism operators who said such a move would damage the desert, create a monopoly for Kandume’s company, and result in job losses.

Shifeta insisted this week that the Namib Desert concession was not final since four conditions had to be fulfilled in totality.

“No final unsolicited award was granted to Skye Eye Hospitality and Tours CC, as they had not met the conditions set out in the provisional award letter and failed to pass the test of the first stage of the process to award the final unsolicited concession,” he said.

The minister said: “This means as of now, the minister’s decision became academic, because there is no final unsolicited award granted to Sky Eye Hospitality and Tours due to the non-fulfilment of the four conditions in the provisional award letter.”

He denied that Kandume is his right-hand man.

“No, he is not. Just like with other supporters who support my campaign, Kandume has made himself available to be part of the assisting chemistry in my campaign, but is not a unique figure in my campaign,” he said.

Shifeta also denied that Kandume is his financial backer.