RACE KHOMAS REGION
RACE OFFICE CONTACT DETAILS
Fax: (061) 23-1367 e-mail:
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RACE Coordinator: Ms Patricia B. Pieterse: tel.: (061) 293-4509
Clerical Assistant: tel.: (061) 293-4288
National UN Volunteer: tel.: (061) 293-4204
Street Address: Room 912, 9th floor, Frans Indongo Gardens, Dr Frans Indongo Street, Windhoek
Postal Address: Private Bag 13236, Windhoek
Opening hours: Monday - Friday 08:00 - 17:00
My Future is My Choice Coordinator: Mr Mbenao Ben-Moore Ndovazu
Tel.: (061) 21-5712 cell 081-224-0474 fax: (061) 26-1459
Street Address: Multi-Purpose Youth Resource Centre, Leonard Auala Street, Katutura
THE REGION
Of the 13 regions in Namibia, Khomas Region is the most central region. Most schools are situated in the urban area of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia.
OUR VISION
To reduce the transmission of HIV, to reduce stigma and discrimination, and to mitigate the social and economic impact of HIV and AIDS on the Namibian education system at all levels. | PROGRAMMES
Window of Hope
Window of Hope is an official programme of the Ministry of Education, supported by UNICEF. It is a comprehensive HIV and AIDS life skills intervention programme, facilitated by teachers. It targets children aged 10 to 14 (Grades 4-7).
The Window of Hope programme aims:
- to equip primary school learners with the self-esteem, knowledge and skills they need to protect themselves against HIV and to cope in AIDS-affected communities
- to develop the necessary life skills to empower young people to face the challenges of our changing modern society
- to prepare them to care for others, to deal with sickness and to overcome the stigmatisation associated with HIV and AIDS.
There are two components of Window of Hope. The in-school component integrates HIV care and prevention life skills into all regular school subjects, especially Natural Science and Health Education and Social Studies, in Grades 5-7. The after-school component is implemented as a children's club, facilitated by teachers. Junior Window of Hope clubs are for children in Grades 4 and 5 and Senior Window of Hope clubs for children in Grades 6 and 7. In Khomas Region Junior and Senior Window of Hope clubs were implemented in 2004 and 2005 respectively. | My Future is My Choice
My Future is My Choice is an official programme of the Ministry of Education, supported by UNICEF with funds from the Government of Sweden. It is an extra-curricular life skills training programme for secondary and combined schools and out-of-school youth. It targets young people aged 15-25. It consists of 10 two-hour sessions which are facilitated by peer educators (volunteers).
My Future is My Choice aims to:
- prevent young people from becoming infected with HIV and dying of AIDS
- provide young people with facts about sexual health, pregnancy, STIs and HIV and AIDS
- provide young people with the skills to delay sexual intercourse
- improve the communication between girls and boys, between friends, between young people, between young people and their parents, and between them and the community
- improve young people's decision-making skills
- provide young people with the skills they need so that they can make informed decisions about their sexual health, and
- provide young people with the information and skills required to face peer pressure over the use of alcohol and drugs. | AIDS Awareness Clubs
Many schools also have AIDS Awareness Clubs which conduct ongoing HIV and AIDS-related activities and raise awareness amongst learners, teachers, parents and their communities by, for instance, participating in international and national awareness campaigns such as HIV and AIDS Awareness Week, World AIDS Day, Education For All Week, World No Tobacco Day, etc. | Counselling in Schools
Besides the HIV and AIDS Coordinator(s) in each of the schools, teacher counsellors have also been extensively trained by the Regional School Counsellor. These teachers, in collaboration with every teacher in the school, are expected to support, guide and counsel learners-in-need (who display emotional-behavioural difficulties or who might be orphaned or vulnerable, or infected or affected by HIV & AIDS).
| Other Programmes
Apart from the government programmes, numerous medium and short-term initiatives are also taking place, e.g. the Speaker Series (where positive people reach out to schools, addressing the reality of living with HIV); initiatives from Catholic AIDS Action, Phillipi Trust Namibia, Childline/Lifeline, the City of Windhoek, Namibia Red Cross Society, etc. | ACTIVITIES 2007
July
All school principals, the TRC Manager and the MFMC Coordinator were requested to submit brief reports on their activities for the three awareness campaigns conducted by this office during the first half of 2007, namely, Education For All Week (April), World No Tobacco Day (31 May) and HIV and AIDS Awareness Week (June).
Principals of secondary schools and special schools were requested to release their Contact Teachers to attend the UNICEF MFMC Contact Teachers' Orientation Training Course scheduled for Thursday, 2 August in Windhoek.
Principals of rural primary schools were requested to nominate one teacher and one hostel staff member to attend the HAMU First Aid Training Course scheduled for 29-31 August in Windhoek.
All school principals, the TRC Manager and the MFMC Coordinator were invited to submit brief contributions to the HAMU brochure on HIV and AIDS-related issues, with special emphasis on OVC.
HAMU Stakeholders' Conference, 10-12 July, Walvis Bay. Tasks: Drafting a Workplace HIV and AIDS Policy for the Namibian Education Sector and Options for Namibia's Relief Teacher Strategy. Keynote address by the Hon. Nangolo Mbumba, Minister of Education. Director of Ceremonies, Mr Alfred Ilukena, Under-Secretary: Formal Education. Attended by Ms Thea Seefeldt, Deputy Director, Ms Pieterse and Ms Lida Katzao, Senior Human Resources Practitioner.
UNICEF Refresher Training Course for MFMC Facilitators, 13-15 July, Harmony Centre. Attended by Ms Charmaine Tjirare (A. Shipena), Ms Kandjimba and Ms van Wyk.
HAMU/RACE Website Development Workshop, 16-20 July, Polytechnic Library Computer Laboratory, Windhoek. Attended by Ms Pieterse and Ms van Wyk.
Orientation Programme for Star School Managements, 18 July, TRC, Katutura. Organised by Star School Project Operations Manager for Namibia, Ms Miriam Hamutenya. Presentation on Star School Project South Africa by Operations Manager for South Africa, Mr Siphile Mdaka, and Head Coach, Ms Khosi. Presentation on Life Style Foods by Mr Leon Smith. Attended by Ms Pieterse and Ms Kandjimba.
Relevant Regional Office staff were informed of a 5-year follow-up Desert Soul Impact Survey to take place in selected primary and secondary schools in July/August.
Mid-term review submitted to Regional Education Planner. | June
HIV and AIDS Awareness Week in the Education Sector
HIV and AIDS Awareness Week in the Education Sector, 18-22 June. Theme: "A Caring Namibia is a Strong Namibia!" Khomas Regional Launch took place at Eros P.S. on Monday, 18 June. Keynote address given by the Hon. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, Minister of Information and Broadcasting. Director of Ceremonies, Mr Ben C. Geingob, Inspector of Education. Performances by Môreson School, Eros Girls' School, School for the Hearing Impaired and Directorate of Adult Education literacy promoters and learners.
EFA Week preliminary brief report submitted to National Coordinator with accompanying documentation.
RACOC meeting, 23 May. Attended by Ms Kandjimba.
Mid-year review reports submitted to UNICEF.
Industrial Relations Training Course, 28-30 May. Attended by Ms Pieterse.
UNICEF My Future is My Choice Training of Trainers Workshop, Harmony Seminar Centre, 4-12 June. Attended by Ms Pieterse and Ms Charmaine Tjirare, a teacher at A. Shipena SS. | May
World No Tobacco Day, Thursday, 31 May. Sister Nellie Coetzee of the Cancer Association of Namibia (CAN) addressed members of the Regional Office staff on the topic of "Smoke-Free Inside - Create and Enjoy". Two different posters were supplied free by CAN, displayed at the Regional Office and distributed to schools, TRC, libraries and DAE centres with an accompanying letter. Ms Jurita van Wyk, Country Manager of GlaxoSmithKline, supplied pamphlets on how to stop smoking. These were also distributed.
Star School Project Namibia presentation, 10 May. Project represented by Project Manager: Namibia, Ms Miriam Hamutenya, and Ms Hanna Kronvall on behalf of Ittur (Swedish company sponsoring the project). HAMU represented by Ms F.K. Haingura and Khomas Region represented by Ms Tjikuua, Ms Seefeldt and Ms Pieterse. The Project is an HIV and AIDS prevention programme targeting secondary schools. It is currently running successfully in 40 schools in South Africa and the donor wishes to extend the project to Namibia, starting with a pilot project in Khomas Region.
Trimesterly Monitoring forms received from schools, information combined and summarised and collective report submitted to HAMU on 16 May. Some schools' reports have not yet been received. | April
My Future is My Choice
On Friday, 30 March at the Multi-Purpose Youth Resource Centre, Katutura, candidates for new facilitator positions wrote short answer tests on basic information about HIV and AIDS and human sexual health. All passed. Pass mark 50%, candidates' marks ranged from 54% to 82%.
On Monday, 2 and Tuesday, 3 April, 19 candidates wrote self-expression assignments on HIV and AIDS and were interviewed by a selection panel. Panel members were Ms P.B. Pieterse, RACE Coordinator, Chairperson, Mr Peter Shikomba, Youth Development Officer in charge of MPYRC, Mr Ananias Niizimba, Youth Officer, Mr Mbenao Ben-Moore Ndovazu, MFMC Coordinator, and Ms Elsabé Kandjimba, NUNV. Candidates were asked 13 questions. Their answers to 9 of these questions were rated on a 5-point scale. They were also rated on appearance, self-confidence, speaking ability and English proficiency.
The results were processed and the 7 best candidates selected. The candidates were notified of their results on Thursday, 5 and Friday, 6 April. UNICEF was notified of the successful candidates.
The 7 selected candidates, together with the candidates from 5 other regions, travelled to Harmony Seminar Centre on Monday, 9 April to attend the training course given by the UNICEF consultant, Mr Paul Pieters. All 7 successfully completed the course, graduated on Thursday, 19 April and returned to Windhoek on Friday, 20 April. | Window of Hope
Training workshops for Junior and Senior WOH were held at the TRC from 12-16 February and 26 February - 2 March respectively. Training was conducted by Ms S. Gqwede and Ms B. Hough. The workshops were very successful and the trainers submitted reports to HAMU and other stakeholders. The reports include several recommendations for improvement.
DAE Workshop on the Training Manual for Teaching Life Skills and HIV and AIDS to Adult Learners, Jan Ligthart Centre, Thursday, 26 - Friday, 27 April. Ms Pieterse read the opening speech on behalf of Ms Tjikuua and attended part of the morning session on the Thursday. Ms van Wyk and Ms Kandjimba delivered HIV information materials and condoms and attended part of the morning session on the Friday. | Education For All Week
Education For All Week was celebrated from Monday, 23 to Sunday, 29 April. This year's theme was "Education is a Human Right!" The EFA Week Committee met four times and subcommittees held several mini-meetings. Eleven project schools and special schools were invited to perform. About 79 ordinary schools were invited to attend and their learners were invited to bear witness to "Education For All" and "Education is a Human Right!" About 59 individuals and organisations were also invited, including the Honourable Minister of Education, the Honourable Regional Governor and all the Honourable Regional Councillors, representatives of UN agencies, NGOs, parastatals and other government offices. Electronic and printed media were also invited.
The Khomas Regional Launch of EFA Week took place at the UN Plaza, Katutura, on Monday, 23 April. The proceedings lasted from 09:00 until about 12:00, followed by light refreshments. The keynote speaker was the Honourable Deputy Minister of Education, Dr Becky Ndjoze-Ojo. Rev. James Wallace of New Wave Trust gave the opening prayer and Scripture reading. The Honourable Frederick Arie, Regional Councillor for Windhoek Rural Constituency, gave the welcoming remarks on behalf of the Honourable Regional Governor. A UNESCO representative read Dr Claudia Harvey's speech. The Khomas Region Director of Education, Ms Claudia Tjikuua, gave the closing remarks and vote of thanks. The City of Windhoek provided assistance from the City Police for traffic control.
Performances were given by Môreson School, Havana Project School, School for the Hearing Impaired, Kleine Professor College, DAE literacy promoters and learners and the new MFMC facilitators. Many learners from over 20 schools bore witness to the importance of education. The children expressed their own ideas and opinions in their own words. The closing performance was a 20-minute appearance by Gazza, the Official Goodwill Ambassador of the Ministry of Education. As well as singing and dancing, he also addressed the children on the importance of education. | March
UNICEF My Future is My Choice and Window of Hope National Planning Workshop, 5-9 March 2007, Safari Hotel, Windhoek. Attended by Ms Pieterse, Ms Kandjimba, Ms Preclina Hoveka, MFMC Monitoring Coordinator and teacher at Concordia College, Mr Mbenao Ben-Moore Ndovazu, MFMC Coordinator.
Workshop for National United Nations Volunteers (NUNVs) and Supervisors, 14-17 March 2007, Out of Africa Town Lodge, Otjiwarongo. Organised by HAMU in collaboration with UNDP/UNV. Theme: Volunteerism for the Reduction of HIV and AIDS through Participation, Involving, Capacity Building and Engagement. Attended by Ms Pieterse and Ms Kandjimba.
Youth Health Development Programme Khomas Region Main Committee meeting, 14:00 on Tuesday, 13 March 2007, Multi-Purpose Youth Resource Centre, Katutura. Attended by Ms Pieterse, Ms Kandjimba, Ms Hoveka.
Directorate of Adult Education Training Course for Literacy Promoters, Tuesday, 13 March 2007, Teachers' Resource Centre, Katutura. Ms Pieterse facilitated a session on HIV and AIDS and human sexual health.
Started process of recruitment and selection of new MFMC facilitators, in cooperation with Mr Ndovazu, MFMC Coordinator. | FORTHCOMING EVENTS AUGUST-DECEMBER 2007
HAMU/RACE First Aid Training Course, 29-31 August, Windhoek. Target groups: Khomas Region: teachers and hostel staff of rural primary schools and RACE office staff.
UNICEF MFMC Contact Teachers' Orientation Training Course, 2 August, Windhoek. Target group: Khomas Region MFMC Contact teachers (secondary and special schools).
National Launch of Star School Project in Namibia, 12 September, Safari Hotel and Courts, Windhoek. Launch of Pilot School, Jan Jonker Afrikaner SS, Katutura, 14 September.
HAMU Sensitisation Workshop on Workplace Wellness Programme. For Khomas and Otjozondjupa Regions. Dates and venue to be announced.
HAMU/UNAM Regional debriefing visit to Khomas Region. Dates to be announced.
World AIDS Day, 1 December. Celebrations to be held in November.
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