Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare has informed the National Assembly of plans to revisit and assess progress made on the initiative to examine homelessness in Windhoek.

The announcement followed an urgent oral question by UDF MP Nico Somaeb, who wanted to know about plans of the government to address growing homelessness in Windhoek.

"A certain pastor in Khomasdal, Pastor Lino Kenneth, opened a shelter for homeless people in Khomasdal. But this is a good deed that Namibians also contribute to other Namibians. But my concern as a leader, as I'm driving around in the streets of Windhoek, is mostly we are finding people in the streets, homeless people, in this harsh condition of coldness and even during the rainy season."

The premier said the committee had proposed a national response involving both the central government and the City of Windhoek.

"We will go and reactivate that process, but also we'll work with you in so far as you have some specific practical inputs to make on how we can deal with it from the level of the local authorities. It is to really say that, as you rightly indicated, some of these people are forced into certain circumstances that are beyond their control. Therefore, it requires that all of us work together."

Responding to another question by NUDO MP Vetaruhe Kandorozu on farmers' subsidy payments, the Prime Minister said the government has now completed the verification process and has reached a stage where outstanding payments can be processed.

"This year during the debate on the Appropriation Bill, the issue of the 2024-25 drought subsidy arose. There are farmers that are crying on my neck almost on a daily basis about when they are going to get their subsidy. We are about to enter into another drought again, and the government hasn't paid for the previous one," stressed MP Kandorozu. 

"At least we have now been able to quantify precisely the total amount that those are owed, and we are working on all of them to make sure that we resolve them today. Just today, I think we also received some challenges in some regions. I think it's where there is equally a similar matter. And so, yesterday, there was another matter. We are on it, and safe to say, I wish to appeal to the affected farmers to exercise – I know that they have waited for a long time – but at least to exercise, perhaps, a little bit more patience," responded Ngurare.