Consumer News Namibia November Issue 2010

8/7/2019 Consumer News Namibia November Issue 2010

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CONSUMERNEWS

Y O U R V O I C E

NOVEMBER 2010FREE

w w w . c o n s u m e r n e w s n a m i b i a . c o mISSN: 2026-710X

History of

Consumer

Rights

featuringGwen Lister

Renovating

Education

This is

Chicken?

Really?

sugar

water

Vitamin waterOr


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3/32

The Team

PublisherConsumer News

Printed byJohn Meinert Printing

Design & LayoutShapwa HashaliE-mail: [email protected]

EditorVictoria Kangombe

E-mail: [email protected]

Cell: 081 236 0803

JournalistsLouis Maruwasa


Sylvanie Beukes

[email protected]

081 395 5190

Rob Parker

[email protected]

Kaarina Nairenge


Marla Chaneta


Denver Isaacs


Business Development ManagerJacques Nieman


Cell: 081 203 7180

Advertising Sales ExecutiveTabeth Nyahasha


Cell: 081 409 3448

PhotographyNorman Skrywer


Cell: 081 430 4003

Leitago /Narib


Cell: 081 363 2712

Consumer NewsPO Box 96366Windhoek, Namibia

Tel/Fax: +264 61 228 196

[email protected]

Editors Note

CONSUMERNEWS

You deserve more ...

We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic

words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the

good people. ~Martin Luther King, Jr.

CN 01

Namibia Consumer Protection Group: Milton Louw. E-mail: [email protected]

Namibia Customer Service Institute: Jon Allen. E-mail: [email protected]

Website: www.namibiacsi.com

Namibian Consumer Lobby: Bob Ziekenoppasser. Tel: 064-461 461 or 081 284 8000

Namibian Standards Institution: Tel: 061-386 400 / Queries: [email protected]

Website: www.nsi.com.na

Contact details

You deserve more ...

Our mission is to create a platform for you the Namibian consumer, who strives to see

improvement in the value of goods and services and are savvy enough to spot misleading

advertising and poor quality products and services. You deserve more, and together we

have power in numbers, so we welcome your contributions, feedback, acknowledgements

and your voice on products and services that need our investigation.

Reading through some of these articles and consumer complaints, we

came to realise how angry and distressed some consumers are. Many

of the complaints we receive fromcitizens may sound like attempts to

be nasty but we believe this reects upon the poor service delivery in

the country.

It is to be expected for our contributors and complainants to sound

harsh. Our hope is that you as a business owner, target of criticism,

complainant or even a student development ofcer see these complaints

as eye-openers to the myriad of spin-off business opportunities. That is

why you should considerConsumer News as a platform to network and

materialise those business ideas that have been brewing in your mind.

In this months issue, Denver Isaacs talks to The Namibian editor Gwen

Lister, and other opinion leaders, on the history of consumer rights in

Namibia from Independence, the progress since then and where we

are today. We took a look at formal education is it actually promoting

and inspiring creative thought among our youth or is it turning them into

robots (for lack of a better word)?

We would like to extend our gratitude to Milton Louw from the Nami-

bia Consumer Protection Group (NCPG) for his timely and satisfactory

response to customer complaints. We are indeed proud to be associated

with the NCPG.

Happy reading folks and look out for our jam-packed bumper issue.

Viki


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contentsFeature

History of Consumer Rights

Featuring Gwen Lister

Editorial

Weight of prepacks and bread

By Bob Ziekenoppasser

Do you know who I am?

By Victoria Kangombe

Coca-Cola brand investigated

By Kaarina Nairenge

A standard of protection

By Louis Maruwasa

Beauty, the promise of chemicals

By Rob Parker

Formal education: innovation or deception

By Sylvanie Beukes

Consider training as motivation

By Jon Allen

Product labelling

By Kaarina Nairenge

Entertainment

Imke Rust

Arts and exhibitions

International

NCPG (Namibia Consumer Protection Group)

Local Number Portability (LNP)

Sports

IRB Rugby World Cup

table of

04

06

08

12

14

1820

22

24

27

2628


5/32www.teamnamibia.com

A L IT TLE MORE OF THIS. . . AND A L IT TLE LESS OF THAT?

TEAM NAMIBIA MEMB ERS AND SUPPORT ERS CREATE LOCAL WEALTH.

TE AM NAMIBIA. BE NAMIBIAN - BUY NAMIBIAN. C RE ATING JOBS . S UPPORTING LOC AL BUS INE S S .


6/3204 CN

The Oxford dictionary quite thinly denes theword democracy as a state governed according to

the will of its people.

But even within such a sparse explanation, one can

imagine that this will of the people was intended

to mean more than just the political symbolism ofqueuing up at the community hall every four years

to cross off the names of your favourite politicians.

You would not, for example, in a country ruled on

this premise, expect citizens to have to buy stale

bread because they have no other option. Because

here, consumers have rights.

And in this capitalist system, defending these

rights may very well be the true test of that de-

mocracy.

Namibia has been on her own feet for the last 20

years now but when talking about property prices,

electricity hikes or just the price of basic com-

modities, the Namibian consumer is never easily

dened as pushy.

A birds eye

I certainly do believe that consumer rights have

a connection with the broader struggle for democ-racy. In fact, this is what it is all about says Gwen

Lister, editor of the countrys longest running in-

dependent newspaper, The Namibian.

The daily dedicates a page a day to readers text

messages, widely comprised of both complaints

and praise on consumer issues, as well as political

matters. And with over 20 years of reporting on

local matters, Consumer News gauged her views

on whether consumer issues have changed at allbetween now and Independence back in 1990.

Yes, theyve changed. And the situation has prob-

ably gotten far worse as costs escalate on all fronts.

Consumer Rights in Namibia -Two decades and counting

Issues such as rent control, for example, are not

even issues here in Namibia and they should be!

Property prices are astronomical and unaffordable

even to middle income buyers, she says.

She mentions the property bubble set in motion

back in 1991 after the arrival of UNTAG at Inde-

pendence, which is yet to burst.

Our capital, Windhoek, is especially known to be

very expensive with regards to property, whether

one rents or buys. Consumer goods are no excep-

tion. People do complain a lot about these things,

but nothing effective ever really gets done.

Also, consumers themselves are far too apathetic.

They care about high costs of course, but are not

prepared to march, demonstrate or boycott or dothe things people in most other democracies would

do when faced with escalations she says.

I do think that government did something about

certain basic foodstuff being tax exempt, but be-

cause we dont have active monitors, one is never

sure whether the retail outlets observe these ex-

emptions and put the price up to accommodate

that, Lister says.

On the ground

One group that has taken it upon themselves to

change that perception is the Khomasdal-based

Workers Advice Centre, whose members can often

be found in court representing communities who

feel wronged by corporate interests.

While the organisations practice of including

themselves as applicants in clients cases (from

home evictions to pension recoveries) has madethem quite unpopular in legal circles, their pres-

ence often results in the type of demonstrations

and public displays of consumer dissatisfaction

that make media headlines.

f e a t u r e

By: Denver Isaacs


7/32CN 05

The Centre is most notorious for its persistence in

calling for the retrieval of N$116 million which it

says belonged to the workers of the now-defunct

TCL mine in Tsumeb, and which the company in-

sisted was used in its liquidation process.

To be honest, the state of consumer rights here isdire. Its just plain daylight robbery. Theres no

price control, theres no active regulation. And the

main reason is because South African businesses,

who run the biggest share of industry, see Namibia

as no-mans-land, says Hewat Beukes.

There are (international) companies that have

agents responsible for selling here, but they dont

have anyone catering for customer service. This

place is merely a dumping ground for them, hesays. As far as the level of apathy among Namib-

ian consumers goes, Beukes blames the national

trade union movement for what he says is a lack

of leadership.

By Independence there was this strong trade

union movement. But while it had large populous

setup, it was in fact undermined by a strong na-

tionalistic leadership. So to speak of a trade union

movement that is there for the people is a complete

farce, Beukes says.

But take our ght against TCL, and other cases,

and youll see. Were on the brink of a revolution,

adds fellow WAC, Amilcar Beukes. People are

starting to see that only through educating them-

selves on their issues, and standing up for them-

selves, is there really a future to speak of. People

are starting to self-organise. You see it with all

these evictions by the municipalities; people arent

standing for it anymore, he says.

Enter the Commission

On the positive side, the Namibia Competition

Commission (NCC) recently came into being in

December 2009, after already starting to show its

teeth around August that year. The commission is

meant to protect the business market from mono-

polies and bullies, from mergers that would result

in cartels and prevent or lessen competition, and

also to look out for the interests of SMEs.

Namibia is currently one of only two countries in

Southern Africa (along with SA) to have compe-

tition laws such as this in place, and agencies to

implement the law. To date, the agency says it has

dealt with more than 70 cases since its inception,

which could be an indication of positive change

on the way.

Deputy Permanent Secretary of Trade and Indus-

try, Daniel Nghidinua, in his speech at the NCCs

December launch, had high hopes for the commis-sion: It is a known fact that while trade undoubt-

edly brings wider product choices for consumers

through imports, and allows our economy to inte-

grate as part of the regional and international mar-

ket and economy, it potentially has implications

for local industrial capacity and competition of lo-

cally produced goods and production.

Still, its early days in the life of the Commission

and the sceptics already have their theories. Idoubt theyll do anything for the smaller man on

the street. To me it looks more like the new elite

trying to get their foot into the door of territory

held by an opposing cartel.

Look at the sales of Mercedez Benz, Toyota etc.

Your Pupkewitz and your M&Z have run these

forever. Theyre the ofcial agents so you have

to buy through them. And that makes it difcult

for anyone else to enter the market. So unless theyprove me wrong, I think this Commission will

only be trying to move the business between one

cartel and the other. I dont think it will show any

relevance to the man on the street, opines Hewat

Beukes.


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The time is seriously overdue for the Ministry of Trade and Indus-try, which is, according to their website, responsible for the devel-

opment of appropriate policies, legal framework and programmes

for business, to start checking, at random, the weight of imported

pre-packed vegetables and fruits.

On doing regular checks on fruit and vegetables, by placing the

packets on a scale at supermarkets, I found that many of these pre-

packs are underweight, hardly overweight.

Products to be on the look-out for are: apples, pears, carrots,

beetroot, bananas, potatoes and tomatoes. I have also found that

vegetables packed in netting bags are mostly underweight. Really,

when last were those scales checked for the correct calibration?

One might even be in for more shocks if all the scales in outlets

were checked on a regular basis.

On checking bakery products such as loaves of bread wrapped in

cling wrap and price-labelled by the supermarket outlets, it was

found that special loaves of 400g mostly weighed 50-70g less. The

consumer is still being dealt the short end of the stick. It seems that

there is not one shop in Namibia that has the correct weight for

bread and brtchens. I speak under correction though, as I am yetto walk into such a shop!

If I am well informed a brtchen should weigh 55g. I have so far

failed to nd one that is 55g. I also dont understand why ham-

burger buns cost 70-80c more than brtchens do. How many

more grams of our do they use to produce a hamburger bun? I

have also come to realise that years ago, when buying a hotdog,

one would nd that a vienna sausage would be longer than the

brtchen.

After helping out at an uncles corner shop sometime, I was the

resident hotdog-maker guy by the way and I realised how shorter

and shorter the vienna sausages were becoming. I know for sure

that it wasnt the rolls that were getting bigger!

Weight ofprepacks

andbread

I again question, why hotdog rolls with the same quantity of our

must cost 55c more than a brtchen. Are we as consumers madeto believe that we are simply too dumb to understand that it takes

more time to get hamburgers and hotdogs correctly shaped?

Its also sad to see how, on a regular basis, certain products go up

in price but have shrunk in size. I went to a supermarket recently

and was shocked to see how custard doughnuts have diminished in

size. I could go on and on about shrinking product sizes and their

respective escalating prices. So can you by the way, it will make a

difference.

All things considered, all consumers should be vigilant in purchas-

ing goods that have been pre-weighed and are encouraged to test

such weights in-store with the scales provided. And dont be too

complacent to demand for what is deservedly yours. You are the

consumer after all. And you are always right.

e d i t o r i a l

By: Bob Ziekenoppasser


9/32

Katima Mulilo (066) 252 060 Mariental (063) 242 818 Midland (061) 207 4202 Otjiwarongo (067) 304 596

Oshakati ( 065) 221 358 Rundu (066) 255 645 Windhoek Head Office (061) 207 4111

Continuously preparing today for a

prosperous Namibia tomorrow

Contact your nearest AgriBank Branch for further information.

Applicants must have a clean credit

record. Applicants can either be full or part

time farmers.

Applicants should be Namibian citizens.

Applicants must provide a business plan.

Agribank offers flexible installment

options to suit client's financial needs.

The available installment options are:

monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual.

Loans are granted against security of fixed

property, investment or any otheracceptable form of security

(fixed deposits, investments and

surrendering value of policies).

Applicants must provide a quotation

from the registered dealer.

Companies or co-operatives should

provide audited financial statements,

certificate of registration, association

agreement, shareholders or directors

of the company and must have a

registered Auditing Firm.

Requirements

Infrastructure & Implement LoansInfrastructure & Implement LoansLoans are granted to acquire new

equipment and implements such as

irrigation equipment, boreholes,

windmills, dams, water pumps,

combine harvesters, generators,

ploughing equipment, fencing,

hammer mills, mahangu threshers,

silos, etc.

Loans are repayable over periods

which vary between five and ten

years. Legally acceptable conventional

collateral will be accepted as security.


10/32

Just recently, I was standing in a queue in one ofWindhoeks very affordable clothing retail stores,

when I realised that there are only two tellers for a

queue of fteen people. I peeked over to the opposite

end of the tellers booth and realised there was a third

teller who had been sitting there just twiddling her

thumbs. Waiting for knock-off time I guess.

Being the Namibian that I am, I swiftly rushed over

to her before anybody realised that there is an escape

route out of the queue.

Getting there, and with my friendliest smile, she gives

me one of those mid-month-Im-broke looks and un-

couthly said: You people must wait until I call you. I

also have other things to do you know. Dumbstruck,

I just stood there and contemplated on whether to keep

my cool and be complacent, being the Namibian that I

am. Or take the matter up and remind her of who I am.

I opted for option B. I asked her whether she knew

who I am, making sure to raise my voice at the second

go so as to alert the other you peoples to an availableteller. Her mid-month smile faded into a humble she

must be another ministers child smile. No maam.

But would that be cash or card? I was still not sat-

ised. Its not everyday that one can throw compla-

cency out of the window you know.

So I asked her again: Do you know who I am? after

assuring me that she doesnt, I reminded her that I am

a consumer and deserve better treatment. I make sure

that you can sit there and have a loaf of bread to take

home every month-end (twiddling your thumbs hap-pens to be your choice). I shop till I drop to assure that

you get a bonus at the end of the year. Do you know

who I am now? Do you still have other things to do?

This piece may seem fury-lled, but how exactly

should one react to a rude teller or shop assistant who

feels, and clearly displays, that your presence is a nui-

sance to them?

Everybodys thought of a teller is, well at the most

part, someone who will do what they are hired to do to

make your shopping experience as pleasant as possi-

ble. Yes, some customers can be extremely frustrating

but as a service provider bite your tongue and smile

through it!

If you think about it though, such behaviour is a re-

ection of what is happening at top management. If

those at the frontline are not motivated enough toprovide good service, it could be an indicator that

management is either not paying them enough, is not

making their work conditions conducive for growth,

or maybe management has not outlined what it is that

is required of them and have not communicated the

companys mission and goals.

I will assume it is also safe to say that perhaps man-

agement should reassess their recruitment processes.

Some companies often disregard the need for a prop-

er recruitment process for low paying positions. Onewould often nd that tellers are asked to bring in a

friend or relative to ll in the position. These friends

and relatives are given one-day training on how to

scan an item, how to use the cash register and how to

cash up. Thats it. Mind you, this is all done during

working hours.

No, your eyes are not deceiving you. I did not mention

a course in customer service provision. Recruiters of-

ten disregard that function, assuming that everybody

knows how to work with people,ignoring the fact thatthis is the most difcult aspect in the workplace.

Perhaps it is not fair, for consumers, to chastise tell-

ers and other frontline workers. It is however very

little to ask for frontline workers to be trained on how

to communicate with consumers, and to handle con-

sumer inquiries. Frontline workers should be trained

on how to handle difcult consumers so they dont

have reason to assume that all consumers are difcult

and deserve a mid-month Im broke and have better

things to do look and attitude. So next time you havethe rude teller experience, tell them you understand.

Be a fellow consumer to them and ask to advocate for

them to their manager.

Do you know who I am?

e d i t o r i a l

By: Victoria Kangombe

08 CN


11/32CN 17


12/32

Martha adviss consumrs not tous th kttl unncssarily as shhas noticd that as soon as shswitchs th kttl on, th availablunits dwindl fast. Through allth nrgy savings mthods hrhoushold adopts, sh uss onavrag only N$20,00 lctricitya day.Marth

aFarmer,

Windhoek

Congratulations

to all our

other winners:

Danilla Brown

Acquillah Tjavondja

Ccilia Mutanga

Marlin Hansn

Johanna Hoss

Grtruid

Schluckwrdr

Jambllu

Kauhangng

David Hangom

Flornc Litabula

Katwa Batric

Mika Shiindi

Shikwa Lucas

Thopolina RukoroMathus switchs off all lights andappliancs not in us and hasrplacd all convntional bulbs withCFL nrgy savings bulbs at hom.

LonaSwartz,Okahandja

Lonas advic to all lctricityusrs is to us lctricity

wisly. Through doing so,hr houshold consisting ofthirtn family mmbrs, only

uss about N$200,00 worth oflctricity a month.

Sh says it can b don, byadopting simpl masurs liknjoying a braai at last onc

a wk and switching off allappliancs not in us.

My mssag to all lctricityconsumrs is to switchoff all dvics lik cllphon chargrs at thplug sockt whn notbing usd.

SMS COMPeTITION WINNeRS

Don't Waste a Watt!!

Matheus Kondjeinaso,

Rehoboth

MarcelaGaonak

gotsi,

Otjiwarongo

For more information please visit our website at www.nampower.com.na


13/32

As a farmr, it is ssntial thatnrgy savings bcoms a part ofgood farming practic. Tini hasbuilt timrs into his 150 litr gysr

which only switchs on in th arlyhours of th morning for an hourand again in th arly vning foran hour. From 36 units usd aday, th gysr now only uss 22units, which convrts to a savingof 14 units a day. Ovr th priodof a yar, th saving is normousjust from implmnting this onnrgy savings dvic.

maShindaadi-Malima,Windhoek

I tll my family to switch offlights and unplug all appliancsnot in us. It rally hlps, and Ihav noticd a diffrnc, and bydoing so w sav up to N$100,00lctricity a month.

My mssag to all lctricityconsumrs is to switch off allappliancs not bing usd. It is notncssary to lav th tlvision

on whil cooking mals; lav thiron on whn doing somthing ls;or vacuuming small spacs whn

a broom can do th job just as wll.By doing so, I sav N$120,00 on mylctricity bill monthly.

Martha switchs off allappliancs whn not in us

and maks a conscious ffort

on a daily basis to sav nrgywhrvr possibl.

MarthaEmvula,Windhoek

LydiaHawaes,Okahandja

My mssag to all lctricity consumrsis not to us all lctrical appliancs atth sam tim.

Plas sav lctricity bcaus lif isxpnsiv, and us it wisly.

NaomiDraghoender,

Windhoek

Naomi was all smils whnsh rcivd th N$500,00 frlctricity prpaid vouchr. Shputs all lights off whn thr isno-on in a room at hom anduss lctricity sparingly.

Abl switchs off allappliancs whn h gosto work and whn h gtshom, uss lctricitysparingly.

PatriciaKandoro

zu,

Windhoek

Patricia savs lctricity byswitching off lights not nddand using th CFL nrgy savingbulbs. In addition, during thsummr months th gysr isusually st vry low.

AbelKongjeniGerson,Oshakati

TienieBotha,

Windhoek

erhardNangula,Windhoek


14/3212 CN

Coca-Cola is one of the largest beverage company,

manufacturer, distributor and marketer of non-al-

coholic beverages. Coke is extremely popular in

Africa with 36 billion bottles of Coke consumed

every year. Moreover, Coca-Cola Company dis-

tributes sparkling and still beverages such as wa-

VitaminwaterbrandmanipulationBy Kaarina Nairenge


15/32

ter, and fruit drinks. The rst Coca-Cola drink was

bottled between 1885 and 1886 by John Pemberton.

John marked it as patent medicine and claimed that

it would cure whatever ailed the consumers, includ-

ing headaches, impotence and acted as morphine for

those who needed it.

The name Coca-Cola is derived from its two origi-nal medical ingredients Coca a derivative of the

Coca leaf from which cocaine is produced. The

drink contains Cola from the Kola nut from which

caffeine is extracted. The Company decided to cut

out the active cocaine-effect inducer after public

speculation that the drink had similar effects to co-

caine and morphine.

The controversies surrounding labelling and the in-

gredients of Coke products have continued to thisday. So can it really be news to everyones ears that

Coca-Cola Companys Vitaminwater has an inter-

esting storyline behind it? This is what I mean: on

May 25, 2007, Coca-Cola Company announced

news about acquiring the energy drink brand Vi-

taminwater at the acquisition of $4.1 billion in cash.

The story ofVitaminwaterVitaminwater began in 1996 in New York City when

adventurer J. Darius Bikoff was suffering from a rag-

ing thirst and low energy. He was feeling rundown

and gargled a vitamin C tablet and chased it with a

swig of water. The combination of avour and nour-

ishment inspired Bikoff and he developed Vitamin-

water. It was marketed as an active lifestyle bever-

age that is packed with nutrients. It was launched at

the start of the new millennium.

While the product purports to be a healthy lifestyle

choice the truth is that the product is little more

than sugar water with a handful of synthetic vita-mins thrown in. These tactics seem to break the

Jelly Bean Rule established by the U.S Food and

Drug Administration on May 19, 1994. This is a

rule against unfair labelling and is meant to pro-

tect consumers. The rule is there to prevent just

the type of misleading advertising perpetuated by

Coca-Cola in this instance. The rule states that youcannot add a healthy ingredient (like vitamins) to

a product which is fundamentally unsuitable like

a jelly bean, just so the company can claim it is

healthy.

Coca-Cola was sued recently, and lost, over these

Vitaminwater claims, because the Vitaminwater

adverts and the message put across is misleading

to consumers. The lawyer of Coca-Cola had the

audacity to assert that no consumer could reason-

ably be misled into thinking that Vitaminwaterwas a healthy beverage even after the company

deliberately marketed and branded their product

as such.

Come to think of it, what kinds of nutrients are

found in Vitaminwater that can build you up into

more muscles than Brussels or keep you perky

when you are feeling murky. Is Vitaminwater re-

ally a healthy product or does Coca-Cola use a Jel-

ly Bean rule to claim that Vitaminwater is healthywhen it is not? The results of the lawsuit suggest

the latter is true.


16/32

On October 14th, the world celebrates World StandardsDay. The day honours the efforts of the thousands of expertswho develop voluntary standards within standards develop-

ment organisations such as the International Electrotechni-

cal Commission (IEC), International Organisation for Stan-

dardisation (ISO), and the International Telecommunication

Union (ITU). The aim of World Standards Day is to raise

awareness among regulators, industry and consumers as to

the importance of standardisation of the global economy.

But why are standards required in the rst place?

National standards at their most basic level ensure a qual-

ity of performance. They protect consumers from bad per-

formance and even from fatal consequences. Medicine, air-

planes, car components are all products that, if they were to

fail or be improperly made, could have fatal results for those

consumers using them. This is why standard bureaus and in-

stitutions of standards were created.

In Namibia the role of ensuring that products adhere to stan-

dards falls on the Namibia Standards Information and Qual-

ity Ofce or simply through its active arm the Namibian

Standards Institutution. Here is a brief background on the

organisation and its role:

NSIQO StandardsThe Namibia Standards Information and Quality Ofce

(NSIQO) was established on 1, January, 1996 as a govern-

ment department and operates under the Ministry of Trade

and Industry. The ofce developed a National Quality Policy

(NQP), which was adopted by Cabinet on 1 June 1999. The

NQP is designed to improve the quality of life in Namibia,

as reected in the living conditions of the people, by making

improvements in the countrys products and services a cen-

tral focus of the implementation of all development projects.

The objectives of the NSIQO include:

to provide information on standards and technicalspecications used worldwide;

to facilitate the access and ow of information on

quality infrastructure;

to promote the concept of quality awareness within

industry as well as in the general public; and

to encourage Namibian companies to produce quality

and safe products.

During June of 2010 the Namibian Standards Institution

signed a memorandum of understanding with the SABS

(South African Bureau of Standards) in order to obtain help

in the formulation and development of NSI technical capac-

ity in standardisation, conformity assessment and quality as-surance.

This was part of the government effort to grow their capac-

ity, thereby ensuring that products that are made in Namibia

or end up on Namibian shelves are of sufcient quality.A standards bureau investigates issues such as whether a

milk product made in Namibia or elsewhere is really safe

and contains what the package says it contains. We have

seen the effects of simple products like these not being made

to standard in the way that several times children in China

have gotten sick and even died from tainted milk. Or the

case of home-brewed beer that killed and left blind people

in Kenya.

A standards bureau is also necessary to stop shops from hav-

ing expired products on shelves by forcing manufacturers

of all perishable goods to display expiry dates and therefore

protect consumers from buying expired produce.

It also dictates the manner in which certain product classes

must be manufactured. For instance, it was these types of

standards and the effort of consumer rights organisations

that made it mandatory that all cars have seat belts.

Detailing standards also allows Namibian industry to make

goods that can be exported to other countries as they meet

international regulations for quality required in that prod-

uct class. It also gives the nation a framework for improv-

ing quality of locally-produced goods for export purposes.

It also ensures that when these goods are sent oversees thechances of them being rejected by authorities in the destina-

tion country are minimal.

Standards are set at the international level via organisations

like the WTO (World Trade Organisation) and collectively

agreed upon by nations to avoid Technical Barriers to Trade

Agreement (TBT) which are regulations, standards, testing

and certication procedures that create unnecessary obsta-

cles to trade.

Yes, Namibia is trying to keep products to standard but there

is a thorny issue that, adhering to standards raises, speci -cally in what category do the low quality Chinese goods that

are being allowed on the Namibian market fall? Should they

be banned or analysed by the bureau before being given im-

port licenses for Namibia?

There has been a clamping down on some low quality goods

on the Namibian market, but it is hoped that in future the na-

tion becomes even more proactive in defending the consum-

ers of services and goods in Namibia, by ensuring that only

those that meet the standard remain in the market space.

The Namibian Standards Institutution aptly uses as its slogan

creating peace of mind. As long as standards are vigor-ously maintained, the people of Namibia should have peace

of mind when buying goods within the country, as should

consumers in international markets when buying Namibian

products.

A standard ofprotection

e d i t o r i a l

By: Louis Maruwasa

14 CN


17/32CN 15


18/32


19/32


20/32

Beauty, thepromiseof

chemicals

18 CN

Do you know what ingredients are used in your beautycare products? Are the everyday products that you are

applying to your face, skin and hair really safe for use?

For everyday use? Canadian scientist David Suzuki,

through his foundation, recently released a list of the

dirty dozen chemicals and elements contained in make-

up which may be harmful to you.

The foundation (no pun intended) states that they recruited

6,200 volunteers to check ingredients listed in 12,550 everyday

cosmetic products. The list included shampoo, toothpaste, lip-

stick and skin cleansers.

The team attempted to identify products which contained 12

chemicals the foundation says are linked to cancer, severe aller-

gies and asthma, and reproductive disorders. 80% of the prod-

ucts checked, or four out of every ve, contained one of the

twelve agged chemicals.

Lisa Gue, the groups health specialist spoke about the results:

Our survey results indicate the widespread presence of a dirty

dozen ingredients in products that we use on our bodies every

day. Clearly we need more effective regulatory action to keep

these potentially harmful chemicals out of consumer products.

Many of the labels are misleading due to loopholes in the regu-

latory framework, she says. The blanket term of perfume

for example disguises a cocktail of harmful chemicals. The fra-

grance loophole clearly fails the sniff test, Gue said. Cosmet-

ic manufacturers should be required to specify which chemicals

they use as fragrance ingredients, and potentially harmful ingre-

dients should be replaced with safer alternatives.

The dirty dozen as the chemicals are known are listed below.

The dirty dozen:

1 BHA and BHT. Used in moisturisers as preservatives,

the suspected endocrine disruptors may cause cancer and are

known to be harmful to sh and other wildlife

2 Coal-tar dyes such as p-phenylenediamine and colours list-ed as CI followed by ve digits. Used in some hair dyes, may be

contaminated with heavy metals toxic to the brain.

3 DEA, cocamide DEA and lauramide DEA is used in some

creamy and foaming moisturisers and shampoos. These can re-

act to form nitrosamines, which may cause cancer and are said

to be harmful to sh and other wildlife.

4 Dibuytl phthalate is used as a plasticiser in some nail-care

products. This chemical is a suspected endocrine disrupter and

reproductive toxicant. It is also harmful to sh and other wild-

life.

5 Formaldehyde releasing preservatives such as DMDM hy-

dantoin, diazolidinyl urea, imidazolidinyl urea, methenamine,

quarternium-15 and sodium hydroxymethylglycinate are used

in a variety of cosmetics. These slowly release small amounts

of formaldehyde, which causes cancer.

6 Paraben, methylparaben, butylparaben and propylparaben

are used in a variety of cosmetics as preservatives. These are

suspected endocrine disrupters and may interfere with male re-

productive functions.

7 Perfume. This is any mixture of fragrance ingredients used

in a variety of cosmetics. Some fragrance ingredients can trig-ger allergies and asthma. Some are linked to cancer and neuro-

toxicity. Some are harmful to sh and other wildlife.

8 PEG Compounds such as PEG-60 is used in some cosmetic

cream bases. It is said to be contaminated with 1.4-dioxane,

which may cause cancer.

9 Petrolatum. Used in some hair products for shine and as a

moisture barrier in some lip balms, lip sticks and moisturisers.

A petroleum product can be contaminated with polycyclic aro-

matic hydrocarbons, which may cause cancer.

10 Siloxanes: cyclotetrasiloxane, cyclopentasiloxane, cy-

clohexasiloxane and cyclopethicone are used in a variety of

cosmetics to soften, smooth and moisten. These are suspected

endocrine disrupters and reproductive toxicant (cyclotetrasilox-

ane). These are also harmful to sh and other wildlife.

11 Sodium laureth sulphate. Used in some foaming cosmetics,

such as shampoos, cleansers and bubble bath. Can be contami-

nated with 1.4-dioxane, which may cause cancer.

12 Triclosan is used in some antibacterial cosmetics, such as

toothpastes, cleansers and deodorants. This chemical is a sus-

pected endocrine disrupter and may contribute to antibiotic re-

sistance in bacteria. This chemical is harmful to sh and other

wildlife.

Courtesy the David Suzuki Foundation- Via Canadian Broad-

casting Corporation.

Visit the site at http://www.davidsuzuki.org/

e d i t o r i a l

By: Rob Parker


21/32CN 17


22/3220 CN

We are living in an age that is rich with informa-tion. Cellular phones, Car Phones, Fax machines,

Voice mail, Call forwarding/call waiting, Email.

Theres a paralysing menu of communication

tools. In this blizzard of information overload,

our education system has not advanced to meet

the increased ow in data. Children are still being

taught in conventional classroom settings with aboard and a teacher, and we ask ourselves: Why

are there so many school drop outs? Perhaps the

question we should ask is what is wrong with the

education system that children dont nd it inter-

esting anymore? It than becomes clear that the

education system is strongly contesting against iP-

ods, PlayStation, DSTV, Wii etc. for childrens

attention. These seem to be far more interesting

than the ordinary classroom setting.

However if we do not nd the answer to this ques-

tion, our children dont stand a ghting chance

in this global information wave. The truth is the

world is changing at an ever accelerating pace.

Life, society, and economics are becoming ever

more complex. The nature of work is radically

Formal education:Innovation or

Deception?

o p i n i o n

By: Sylvanie Beukes


23/32CN 21

shifting. Jobs are disappearing at an unprecedent-

ed rate. It is an age of uncertainty. And whoever

hesitates is lost! Therefore the speed at which the

world is changing demands a matching ability to

learn faster. As a nation we urgently need to im-

prove the quality of our education system. Wheth-

er you have school-age children or not this subject

is of vital importance to you. It affects you as ataxpayer, citizen and member of the work force.

We are all aware that automation is replacing low-

skill repetitive jobs; this is an age of technologi-

cal unemployment. Our own unemployment rate

is over 50%, our grandparents often held one job

for their rest of their lives. Our parents probably

had one or two jobs. Todays school dropouts face

the intimidating prospect of three or four career,

changes during the course of their lifetime. Careersnot just jobs, it is no longer relevant to ask: What

do you want to do when you grow up? The ques-

tion should instead be: What do you want to be

rst? We have gone from being resource rich in

the old economy to being resource poor in the new

economy almost overnight. And that is because

our public education system has not successfully

made the shift from teaching the memorisation of

facts to achieving critical thinking skills.

The current education system does a wonderfuljob of educating a minority to a good standard, but

huge advances in the standards of education of the

majority need to be made in the next few years.

Children are leaving schools poorly equipped for

all the jobs of the future: the jobs that will require

very high standards of analytical thought, creativi-

ty and exibility. In fact, who really knows exactly

what these jobs will be? An Education system that

will be far more useful for Namibia would be of

raising the educational standards of everyone notjust the elite minority. And an emphasis on person-

al growth rather than just material advancement.

This is an important solution to the challenges to

come. The focus of schooling must be broadened

from the acquisition of knowledge to include the

development of wisdom and emotional maturity.

Our technical competence as society is far out-

stripping our ability to make wise choices.

Most education and training, however, still con-centrates almost exclusively on the content and

not the process. A signicant difference between

people who are labelled as poor learners and

those that are labelled effective learners is sim-

ply that the latter have worked out some effective

strategies for learning. Its not just the acquiring bits

and pieces of general knowledge. It cant simply be

measured by grades and exam results. Its not just

taking onboard what other people know. Learning

is a lifelong adventure. Its a never-ending voyage

of exploration to create your own understanding.

Learning must begin much earlier than the childsrst day at school and it must continue well in to

retirement. We need to make changes urgently. We

need to help all parents create a rich, stimulating,

thought-provoking environment in the pre-school

years. In the primary school years, we need smaller

class sizes and the active collaboration of parents

with the school to provide their children with inter-

esting, challenging, and relevant projects that stimu-

late curiosity and thought.

In the early secondary school years, we need to en-

sure that students become capable of learning on

their own so they can fully utilise the dazzling oppor-

tunities of the interactive learning aids. They should

also be working collaboratively to tackle problems,

such as community issues that engage their interest

because they are relevant to their lives.

The investment should be in attaining the vision of

lifelong learning through a partnership that involves

students, parents, teachers, business executives andgovernment leaders. A partnership which recognis-

es that education is a mutual shared responsibility.

Data is the new oil and to tap into this rich resource

we need to develop our minds and that of our chil-

dren. After all, wasnt it Winston Churchill that said

The empires of the future will be the empires of the

mind!


24/3222 CN

CONSIDER TRAINING AS MOTIVATION

Jackson Brown Jr., an American author, once said:

Dont waste time learning the tricks of the trade.

Instead, learn the trade. Perhaps we can modify it

to suit the purpose of this piece: Dont waste time

teaching the tricks of the trade. Instead, teach thetrade. Teach your staff the trade and you wouldnt

have to be foraging around for tricks.

Invest in your people. Empower your people. We

all want to be motivated on a daily basis. We all want

motivation to get us through what often is a day in

which were not following our passion.

Were most often stuck in a job where all we want

to achieve, is working for our rent/bond, our carpayment (if were fortunate to own one), and to

have our Edgars and cellphone accounts paid suc-

cessfully on a monthly basis. Were not in the least

bit interested in putting in any effort beyond the end

of our shift because theres absolutely no incentive

to do so.

Those most prepared to have customer service train-

ing done in our country at the moment are the wor-

ried well. Those that are actually in the greatest

need for training either dont realise the desperateneed or dont think its important enough to invest

in. I read something years ago which read If you

think training your staff and having them leave, is

hard; try not training them and having them stay!

Imagine the effect on your business then?

As people, continuous education and constantly

upgrading our knowledge is vital for development.

Learning is a non-stop process. Since the onset of

the internet, we all have an innite amount of in-

formation at our disposal substantially more easilyaccessible than ten years ago.

There are so many training courses available in the

local market today, thats if were not training our

staff continuously, then were still in the stone-age.

There are a number of training institutions offer-

ing customer service training specically, including

ourselves, that is truly worth your while investigat-

ing. As far as content, cost and medium-term effect

on your business is concerned, training alone is not

going to do it, but its a great start.

Training is right up there alongside caring for your

staff and motivating them as well as effectively and

proactively managing them. The effect on your

business will be remarkable. No time like the pres-

ent especially with Christmas fast approaching. The

season for shopping (being inundated by customers

the reason why were all in business, remember?).

Think about it. Invest in your business by investing

in the development of your staff.

Creating Opportunity,

Changing the Face of

Customer Service

Creating Opportunity, Changing the Face ofCustomer Service

e d i t o r i a l


25/32


26/32

By Marla Chaneta

New Works is a combined art exhibition by Imke Rustand Silke Berens that opened on the 18th of October at

Studio 77. The artworks showcased personied meta-

phorical expressions of human gures and illustrated

the difculties and hardships encountered in human

relationships.

This theme is made manifest through the use of digital

print and the traditional painting. The pieces by Imke

originated from photographs that she later overshad-

owed using a paint brush and acrylic paint. This com-

bination of digital art and painting creates a transition

24 CN

NewWorks

e n t e r t a i n m e n t

The Dream II by Imke Rust


27/32

between rough and smooth strokes, producing a multi-

textural feel.

The use of multi-texture creates a deeper, dreamier

tone to the art. Making it mysterious yet easy to un-

derstand and relate to. Silke Berens work however

employs the traditional painting approach. Both artists

have a shared interest in human gures, yet a contrastis drawn through the use of oil paint in these works.

The use of oil paint adds weight and heaviness to the

art. This, in turn, creates an atmosphere of moods that

move the viewer into an imaginative air, allowing one

to escape into the painting and respond subconscious-

ly to the imagery portrayed.

Consumer News had a heart-to-heart with Imke and

this is what she had to say about her work and her

inspiration:

1) How long have you been painting?For as long as I know, I have been drawing and paint -

ing and just love being creative. In 1999 I started to

take this passion more seriously and decided to make

it my profession, so I enrolled for a Visual Arts Degree

at the University of South Africa.

2) What is your biggest source of inspiration?

I nd inspiration in so many things. I am fascinated by

any interesting visual stimulation, thought-processes,

relationships between things and symbolic stuff. When

something catches my eye or my minds attention, I

would try to connect more and more dots visually and

conceptually and see where it leads me to.

3) Why the interest in human gures?

The human gure is intriguing because it is visually

beautiful and interesting, but almost more importantly

it is so close to home. It immediately establishes an

emotional, psychological and personal connection be-

tween the viewer, the artist and the artwork. Everything

becomes more personal when a person is involved.

4) What does it mean to use a multi-textural combina-

tion?

The choice of the media I use in my artworks usuallyforms an important and integral part of the artwork and

ideas behind it. I am fascinated by the complexities

of life and my subjects and I express this through my

art. I therefore nd the choice of combining different

media, elements, textures, shapes etc. an appropriate

extension of these complexities. I just love how these

combinations add more layers to the meaning and the

visual adventure.

5) On the Jurell website (http://www.jurell.com/en/

konst/it-all-boils-down-single-word), Torsten Jurell

describes your pieces as a metaphoric representation

of current events or situations. Was that the case with

The Dream II? What does it mean? What does it rep-

resent?

This image was inspired by a newspaper photograph

of one of my most favourite artists, Max Neumann, a

painter from Berlin, walking in front of one of his huge

paintings. I love the image and used some elements

from it as a starting point for this work. It then took on

its own life, as my art usually does.

The more I worked on it, it kept on reminding me of the

ancient tradition of rock painting by shamans. Which

are believed to have been painted images of great

hunting successes. Through these, they gave the idea

a concrete shape and thus made it real and the next

hunt would be successful because they imagined it,

put it into a picture, named it and then created the

reality.

I would like to share a concept I have been extensively

thinking about: does an image or any physical expres-

sion from a person hold much more spiritual power

than we can imagine? Does a rain dance maybe really

inuence the weather because of the intention and en-

ergy set free? Are we creating our own reality by what

we are expressing?

In my mind this work also has a subtitle: Advent of

the Grafti Man. Besides the spiritual idea behind it, I

thought it was also a humorous link to the modern day

grafti culture (which I am also a great fan of). Consid-

ering the age-old rock-painting tradition, the modern

and civilised man is not so much different we still

love to make marks on our walls.


28/3226 CN

The Namibia Consumer Protection Group welcomes number por-tability for ushering in greater freedom of choice, spurring com-

petition and encouraging technological innovation in the telecom-

munications industry.

Local Number Portability (LNP) removes barriers to switching net-

works and provides consumers with a greater choice of telecom-

munication service providers and the convenience of keeping their

existing numbers. It really benets the ratepayer; the consumer.

Whether they have switched mobile telecommunications serviceproviders or not, customers have already started reaping the ben-

ets of lower prices as well as attractive packages offered by wire-

less carriers as inducements to keep customers from switching.

LNP is, according to web-based encyclopaedias, the ability to

transfer either an existing xed-line or mobile telephone number

assigned by a local exchange carrier (LEC) and reassigning it to

another carrier.

Most countries around the world have opened their telecommunica-

tions markets to competition. This has accelerated the deployment

of telecommunications services more quickly and cost-effectively

than past monopolies.

Some of these liberalisation efforts are being driven by regulations

that call for number portability. For example, the European Union

(EU) Universal Service and Users Rights Directive (2002/22/EC),

Article 30 effective since July 2003 imposes on all EU member

states the following obligations:

Member states shall ensure that all subscribers of pub

licly available telephone services, including mobile

services, who so request, can retain their number(s)

independently of the undertaking providing the service;

In the case of geographic numbers, at a specic

location; and

In the case of non-geographic numbers, at any location.

As consumers, we must have the choice of which service provider

we want to use. Most cellular and telephone subscribers however

do not wish to lose their present number and therefore stay with

the present provider. One of the toughest responsibilities facing the

regulators in the Namibian telecom markets involves modernising

our national numbering policies, numbering plans, and dialling

plans.

We have to establish a numbering policy that provides a legal, leg-

islative, and regulatory basis for competition. Then, our regulator

must decide on numbering and dialling schemes, services, tech-

nologies, and billing and tariff methods that support its chosen

numbering policy.

Lastly, it must also establish a fair, neutral ofce for numberingadministration. I have heard the argument of the costs of imple-

menting such a system this however is always only the argument

of the company with the biggest client base.

As part of a consumer education action, the Namibia Consumer

Protection Group (NCPG) has posted the issue of number portabil-

ity on the web pages of all three mobile service providers, namely:

MTC:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/MTC-Namibia/

Switch (Telecom): http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=11597

5076023&topic=14590

Leo - could not nd a postings page so sent an email.

Please follow the discussion, participate. Let us nd out what these

large corporates do when a person on the street has something to

say? We will follow-up on this issue next month to see what you

and the telecom companies have to say on the issue.

Milton Louw is the founder of the Namibia Consumer Protection

Group. The NCPG is active on the streets and has a presence on

the Internet.

Keep your numberchange your

network


e d i t o r i a l

By Milton Louw


29/32CN 27

The picture you see here looks like strawberry Soft Serve

ice cream doesnt it? Well looks can be deceiving. This

is nothing other than chicken. Chicken that has been me-

chanically separated.

Have you ever wondered why your chicken products taste

the way they do? What ingredients they have muddled up

to produce that tasty Vienna, chicken burger, and meat pie

sausages?

Mechanical separation is a process which creates a paste-

like meat product. This is produced by forcing beef, pork,turkey or chicken bones with attached meat tissue, under

high pressure, through a sieve or similar device to separate

the bones from the meat tissue.

This process is done by machines and not humans. This

method is also referred to as advanced meat recovery.

This process has been in use since the 1960s. The separa-

tion of chicken mechanically is a means for meat proces-

sors to make greater prots from chicken, turkey, pigs and

cows by scraping the bones 100% clean of meat.

The end result of this process gives you a product used inburger meat, hot dogs, Vienna sausage and polony. Hot

dogs and similar products also usually contain a high

amount of extenders and llers such as breadcrumbs, our

and starches, and up to 25% water.

The regulation in many countries on food labelling has

been voluntary and states that all the information on food

labels must be true and not misleading or deceptive. The

Canadian Food and Drug Acts published on January 1,

2003 for instance, states that it is mandatory to label food

products and to update all nutrient content claims when

the need arises. Additional regulations stipulate that hotdogs, for instance, can only contain 20% of mechanically

separated pork.

Namibia has not had aggressive legislation in place to

deal with food security since 1990. It was only recently,

in 2006, that experts from the Namibian Government, the

Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and

Product Labelling

stakeholders in the agriculture and trade industries met to

draft a Food Safety Bill which was to replace a law dating

back to 1919 as well as the Public Health Proclamation of

1920 of South Africa, under which the Namibian territory

fell until Independence in 1990.

The signicance of labelling is to provide the consumer

with information that they can use to make intelligent

choices about what foods to buy and eat. Often we arebombarded with information that is confusing and not ac-

curate.

According to a UK-based food standards agency Food

authenticity is all about whether a food matches its de-

scription. If food is misdescribed, not only is the consum-

er being deceived, but it can also create unfair competition

with the honest manufacturer or trader. The description of

food refers to the information given in relation to its name,

its ingredients, its origin, and the processes undergone.

If our government cares for us as consumers, why are foodproducts in our country not labelled as mechanically

separated to inform Namibian consumers and help us to

make healthy choices on what food to buy and what not?This graph shows the huge amount of mechanicaly separated poultry imported by just one company

into south africa, rainbow chicken farms. 81 tons of mechanicaly separated chicken in 2009 alone.

i n t e r n a t i o n a l

By Kaarina Nairenge


30/3228 CN

NAMIBIAS Welwitschias stand a better chance to

record a win at their fourth IRB Rugby World Cup

tournament set for New Zealand next year.

The Namibians have never won a match in all their

previous appearances and can be close to record-

ing their rst victory at the world showpiece, judging

from their improved performances over the past two

seasons.

The side has put up competitive challenges in the

South African Airlines (SAA) Vodacom Cup earlier

this season and that against formidable South Afri-

can franchise sides. They also won the International

Rugby Board (IRB) Nations Cup this year.

Winning the Nations Cup was boosted by the front-

running Vodacom Cup which virtually exposed most

of the players to the tactical and technical scenarios

of the game at the highest level. The Namibian side

won several matches in that competition, especially

on home soil and it improved their performance and

game skills overall.

Their sense of urgency in getting over the advan-

tage line and with coach, Johan Diergaardt, employ-

ing a speedy back-line, made a huge difference for

the Namibians. As a result, this made them square

up equally against the skilful South Africans from the

different sides who possessed good ball handling

skills, sleek back-line moves and solid front rowers

who could dominate play upfront.

Namibia relied heavily on the experience of their

front-rowers led by the likes of Nico Esterhuizen,

Jane du Toit, Johnny Redelinghuis, Jacque Niewen-

huizen and Pieter-Jan van Lill. The back-line consist-

ed of many younger players who possess the pace

and were rather credible in their defensive work too.

Some of these players who set the stadiums on re

with their blistering pace included winger, Crysander

Botha, full-back, Jacky Bock, Eugene Jantjies and

the de La Harpe brothers, Daryl and Ryaan.

But during the IRB Nations Cup, the man who set

the tongues wagging was team captain and anker

Jacques Burger, who is currently hot property in the

European leagues. That same momentum shortly

Points a must for Namibian rugby at World CupBy Staff Reporter

s p o r t s


31/32

after the Vodacom Cup was carried over to the Na-

tions Cup which pitted Namibia against its African

counterparts which included countries such as Mo-

rocco, Tunisia, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

All were credible contenders for the title and Na-

mibia were the outsiders, but came to the fore withtheir blistering performances which eventually car-

ried through to the last match that secured them the

trophy.

PREPARATIONS

At this stage, the team is looking forward to attract-

ing major rugby playing nations to strengthen vari-

ous aspects of their game. Media reports recently

suggested that the Namibians are set to face Spain

and Portugal as part of their preparations, where

they will also once again compete in the VodacomCup just to further sharpen their skills before going

to the New Zealand rugby battle elds.

According to Diergaardt, who has been at the helm

for just over two years now, the team aims to en-

gage more stronger nations ahead of the World Cup

as it will give them a competitive edge and will put

them on par with the other contenders at that level.

That will in fact be right the choice by Diergaardt,

a former Western Suburbs player and ofcial, as it

will empower his players with the knowledge of what

to expect from the rigid and uncompromising worldrugby powerhouses.

Namibia is also paired with their neighbours, South

Africa, two-time World Cup champions, and it will not

be easy for them to pass that hurdle with a relatively

lower score-line if they do not already face stronger

nations now.

Namibia initially must look at countries such as

France, Italy, Argentina, Scotland and Wales to get

their house in order before the World Cup, but the

costly nature of attracting these countries remains a

challenge for the small local Namibia Rugby Union

(NRU). With the Government intending to give them

a push just before the World Cup and their main

sponsor, Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC)

also behind them with rather limited funding, the

team will nd it a bit difcult to lure these rugby play-

ing nations to improve and further hone their com-petitive skills.

TRIES AND POINTS

Namibia has never won a match at any of the previ -

ous three World Cup tournaments they competed in,

but have managed to score tries, especially at the

last one in 2007 won by South Africa on European

soil.

This time around, the team will be expected to im-

prove dramatically in the areas of getting over theadvantage line and landing those elusive and rather

hard-to-get tries, while they will also have an im-

proved kicking record from any resulting penalties.

Namibia is generally a passionate unit on the eld of

play and can take the game to the opposition if given

that chance, but has a knack for conceding points

easily or when under immense pressure.

The pack of players who do duty upfront also know

very well that a clean ball can set-off their quick-re

back-line and they too work tirelessly to emit such

a ball to the scrum-half. The secret for the Namib-ians to score tries lies in their youthful back-line of

players, but the forwards must also be wide-awake

as they can also nd themselves in try-scoring posi-

tions.

This time, the Welwitschias will not come back home

empty handed, but will score a handful of tries and

they will put slot through those valuable penalty

shots, while they will also make better use of the ball

in their possession. They will also be more result-

oriented and much more solid in defence and their

attack will be more organised and potent.


32/32

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