Duinepos residents are unhappy with the proposed merger of the Duinepos Village School with the Duin/ui Village School.

The school is one of the 6 village schools under the Nyae Nyae Village Schools Project in the Otjozondjupa Region's Tsumkwe constituency.

According to the village school's principal, Cwisa Cwi, the government proposed to merge the school with another school at Duin/ui.

He said the merger of the 2 village schools will aid the government in improving infrastructure, extending it to grade 7, and building a hostel that would subsequently ease the pressure on the Tsumkwe Primary School.

Space and placement for learners at the Tsumkwe Primary School has been a challenge due to the increase in influx of learners from the villages for a long time now.

The government last year extended N#ama Village school to grade 7 and intends to do the same to selected village schools.
Community members who spoke to NBC News say it is better to have their children close to them because whenever they go to other schools, they drop out.

Asvoelnes and Tsumkwe Primary Schools were cited as examples, and parents who have children enrolled at these schools say their children have complained about ill treatment at the hostels.
G#kaoo N//ao is the headman at Duinepos Village.

"The reason we don't want the school to move is because the school is well positioned here and learning here goes well. That's why we are refusing the idea that the school should move. What they should instead do is increase the capacity of the school, because these children really want to learn. The other reason is that the other schools that they are moving from, //aru and #abace, we understand that it's due to water and other problems. Here we are not facing such problems." 

N//ao expressed concerns over the long distance from Duinepos to Duin/ui, saying children are still young and cannot adequately care for themselves.
 He says it would be better if the learners completed their schooling at Duinpos village school and only go to other schools when they are old enough.

Member of the school board, Ui Komtsa Rensberg, who also attended the meeting, expressed concerns on the matter.

"I don't know why they want this school to move; I have been to other village schools, and the infrastructure there is worse than ours. I will understand if they move those schools. Duinpost is at the entrance of Nyae Nyae Conservancy and is next to the road; they should rather upgrade the infrastructure here," he stressed.

The Deputy Education Director for the Otjozondjupa Region, Christopher Tjivikua, said the merger was discussed with the principal of the village schools to relocate the learners from Duinepost to Duin/ui.

He said Duin/ui has state-of-the-art infrastructure that was not being used. 

The hostel too, he adds, has few learners; hence, the merger will aid the principal to operate from Dui/ui since he is currently operating all village schools from Tsumkwe. 

He says it is up to the parents, and if they do not agree, they will continue at Duinepost and upgrade their infrastructure.
Duinepost has more than 100 residents and over 50 children enrolled at the school, with enrolments for the new academic year still ongoing.