The Kavango West Region's 2025/2026 budget falls short of addressing critical needs, according to local leaders, with allocations of N$68 million for capital projects and N$48 million for operations deemed too minimal.

Chief Regional Officer Matheus Singambwe described the funding as inadequate to tackle poverty, unemployment, and stalled projects. 

"The capital budget, along with the two other budgets, is very minimal and insufficient," Singambwe said. "We still have invoices on our desks that we have not been able to pay. The money was very little, and we, as you know, are a very young region. Even to travel and visit these projects—imagine if the director had to travel from Nkurenkuru and visit a project in Katjinakatji; he'd need to go through Rundu and then drive facing Grootfontein, meaning we are paying for kilos already. It's a lot. To say our overall budget allocation did not really address our needs."

Singambwe highlighted staffing shortages due to the low operational budget, noting some positions have remained vacant since the council's establishment in 2014 and the headquarters setup in Nkurenkuru in 2016. 

"We have positions that were never filled before since our creation, and we are hoping that our operational budget should also be increased," he added. "Because when a position is not filled, it means there's a person who needs to do two or three people's jobs because we are alone in that section or in that division. So that is why, to us, it's not to complain, but we have turned it into an opportunity to say it's an opportunity for one to learn more—when you are doing two or three people's jobs, it allows you to learn and do better."

The CRO stressed that boosting the budget would accelerate development in Namibia's youngest region. Beyond allocations, Singambwe said the council aims to generate its own revenue by strengthening local streams.