The Deputy Minister of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts, and Culture, Dino Ballotti, has said that it is time for the Okakarara Vocational Training Centre (OVTC) to finalise the hotel school.

Ballotti made the remarks at the opening of OVTC's Innovation and Entrepreneurship Week.

With Namibia's tourism industry steadily recovering, a hotel school will play a key role in producing a skilled and service-oriented workforce.

It is against this background that the Deputy Minister of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts, and Culture says the hotel school at Okakarara Vocational Training Centre needs to be finalised.

"And not in the coming year or two; I want it to be finalised this year, in January 2026. I commit to coming back if you accept me to come back and cut a ribbon. If that is the case, we need to ensure that this hotel school is up and running by January 2026," said Balotti.

As a sports enthusiast, Ballotti also called for the fast-tracking of a grass field in Okakarara, as it will enable the Okakarara Young Warriors to play their premiership games.

Otjozondjupa Governor Johan

nes ||Khamuseb said that with several mining operations at an advanced stage of exploration, there is a need for more qualified artisans.

"If we do not act with urgency, the region may watch outsiders take the opportunities meant for our people. That is why I am calling on Okakarara VTC, in partnership with the Namibian Training Authority, to expand its curriculum to include mining-related trades in operational skills, such as mining equipment maintenance, occupational health and safety for mining, mineral processing, diesel, and plant mechanics mindset."

The Namibian Training Authority's Board Member Cliff Oliver said the OVTC is on the verge of becoming a major player in Namibia's tourism training landscape.

"It'll host conferences, provide practical learning, and contribute to the industry that is central to our economic growth. But beyond infrastructure, OVTC is innovating in inclusion in its bridging programme is bringing an out-of-school youth who otherwise would be left behind. This is what it means to live our national values."

Entrepreneurship is not a back-up plan but a national growth strategy, as the days of learning a trade to seek employment are over.

The theme for this year's Innovation and Entrepreneurship week is "Trash to Treasure".