Oshakati Otshakati tsha Nangombe | |
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Motto(s): Unity, Justice, Development | |
Coordinates: 17°47′1″S15°41′57.8″E / 17.78361°S 15.699389°E | |
Country | Namibia |
Region | Oshana Region |
Constituency | Oshakati East Oshakati West |
Founded | July 1966 |
Government | |
• Mayor | Leonard Hango [1] |
Area | |
• Total | 56.3 km2 (21.7 sq mi) |
Population | |
• Total | 58,696 |
• Density | 1,000/km2 (2,700/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+2 (SAST) |
Climate | BSh |
Oshakati is a town in northern Namibia. It is the regional capital of the Oshana Region and one of Namibia's largest cities both by population and as an economic center.
Oshakati was founded in July 1966 and proclaimed a town in 1992. The town was used as a base of operations by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the South African Border War.
In Oshiwambo, the language of the Ovambo people, the town's name means "that which is in between", although some believe that the name (Oshakati, also Otshakati) was used to refer to the broadcasting tower, which at 275 metres (902 ft) high was the tallest structure in the town centre and in Namibia.
On 19 February 1988, a bomb blast at the First National Bank in Oshakati killed 27 people and badly injuring nearly 30 others, most of them nurses and teachers. No one was ever convicted of the bombing and the issue was dropped upon independence in 1990 in favour of national reconciliation. [4]
Oshakati has experienced much development since Namibia achieved independence in 1990. It was proclaimed a town in 1992. [5]
Oshakati is located near the B1, Namibia's main highway, which stretches from South Africa through the capital Windhoek and on to the Angolan border.
Since the turn of the century, there are now many shops like furniture stores, shoes stores, pharmacies, etc. The three main shopping centres are Game, Etango, and Yetu. The Oshakati Independence Stadium is situated in town.
In April 2006, the Oshakati town council building was inaugurated by Botswana's president Festus Mogae. Dr. Frans Aupa Indongo Open Market sells groceries, dried fish and dried Mopane worms. [6]
Oshakati is situated in the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin and cut by the Okatana River. Both of these geographic features make the town prone to flooding; in 2008 it was last hit by heavy floods. The Oshakati Master Plan Project is underway to build a 23 kilometres (14 mi) dike around the town, to deepen and straighten the river, and to resettle people living near the riverbed and clogging the flow of water. [7]
Oshakati has a semi-arid climate (BSh, according to the Köppen climate classification), with hot summers and relatively mild winters (with warm days and cool nights). The average annual precipitation is 472 mm (19 in), with most rainfall occurring mainly during summer.
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Oshakati is governed by a town council that has seven seats. [8] The town area covers two electoral constituencies, Oshakati East and Oshakati West.
Oshana Region, to which Oshakati belongs, is a stronghold of Namibia's ruling SWAPO party. In the 2015 local authority election SWAPO won by a landslide (4,569 votes) and gained six council seats. The remaining seat went to the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA) which gained 330 votes. [9] Major Katrina Shimbulu from SWAPO has been serving in this position from 2007 to 2010, and again after the 2015 election. [10]
SWAPO also won the 2020 local authority election. It obtained 3,028 votes and gained four seats. The Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), an opposition party formed in August 2020, obtained 1,887 votes and gained three seats. [11] Leonard Hango is [update] mayor of Oshakati. [1] Leonard Hango was reelected in 2024 as the mayor of Oshakati Town Council. [12]
Formerly known as the Northern Campus, Oshakati Campus is the oldest satellite campus of the University of Namibia, inaugurated on 7 May 1998 by Sam Nujoma, Founding President of the Republic of Namibia and UNAM founding chancellor. [13]
Many primary and secondary schools are to be found in Oshakati, e.g. Iipumbu, Oshakati, Ngolo, Erundu Secondary School, Cabatana and others, including Afoti Combined School in Uuvudhiya constituency in Oshana Region in the Omapopo cluster of Oshakati Circuit.
The Oshana Regional Study and Resource Center was established on September 17, 2014, through the assistance of the Millennium Challenge Account Namibia (MCA-N). [14] Situated between the GIPF house and the Social Security regional head office in Oshakati, the library can host up to 600 people, has 220 study spaces, a meeting hall that can accommodate 125 seated people, a video conferencing room, and shelving spaces for up to 35,000 books. [15]
Oshakati town, (popularly known as 'Otshakati tsha Nangombe' by the native Kwambi people) is within the Kwambi traditional authority.
Oshakati Town Council hosts the annual Oshakati Totem Expo. It combines the celebration of local traditions with a modern business exhibition. [16] The event was launched by Oshana governor Clemens Kashuupulwa, on 9 June 2012. The four-day event now annually takes place in the months of June or July.
Oshakati has a football team, Oshakati City FC.
Oshikoto is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, named after Lake Otjikoto. Its capital is Omuthiya. Further major settlements in the region are Tsumeb, Otjikoto's capital until 2008, and Oniipa. As of 2020, Oshikoto had 112,170 registered voters.
Oshana is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Oshakati. The towns of Oshakati, Ongwediva and Ondangwa, all situated with this region, form an urban cluster with the second largest population concentration in Namibia after the capital Windhoek. As of 2020, Oshana had 113,112 registered voters.
Omusati is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Outapi. The towns of Okahao, Oshikuku and Ruacana as well as the self-governed village Tsandi are situated in this region. As of 2020, Omusati had 148,834 registered voters.
Ohangwena is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Eenhana. Major settlements in the region are the towns Eenhana and Helao Nafidi as well as the self-governed village of Okongo and the proclaimed settlements Ongenga and Omungwelume. As of 2020, Ohangwena had 150,724 registered voters.
Elections in Namibia determine who holds public political offices in the country. Namibia is a semi-presidential representative democratic republic. It runs direct elections every five years for the position of the president and seats in the National Assembly, and every six years for the Regional Councils and the distribution of seats in local authorities. The National Council is elected indirectly by the constituency councillors of Namibia's 14 regions.
Ondangwa is a town in the Oshana Region of northern Namibia, bordering the Oshikoto Region. Ondangwa was first established as a mission station of the Finnish Missionary Society in 1890. In 1914, it became a local seat of government.
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Khorixas is a town with about 9,000 inhabitants in the southern part of the Kunene Region, Namibia. It was the capital of the Damaraland bantustan before Namibia's independence. It is the administrative capital of Khorixas Constituency. Most of the inhabitants are from the Damara ethnic group. The town is located near the Petrified Forest, Khorixas - a deposit of petrified wood and well known tourist attraction of Namibia. The Twyfelfontein valley, known for its rock art, is also accessible from Khorixas.
Outapi wa Nakafingo na Temba, also Outapi or Uutapi and Ombalantu, is a town in northern Namibia near the border with Angola, situated 90 km (56 mi) northwest of Oshakati. It is the capital of the Omusati region and the district capital of the Outapi electoral constituency. The language spoken there is Oshiwambo.
Omuthiyagwiipundi is the capital of Oshikoto Region in northern Namibia, situated approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Etosha National Park. It has about 7,500 residents. Prior to Omuthiya, Tsumeb was the regional capital. The town has been proclaimed in October 2007 and the Omuthiya Town Council established in September 2008.
Ongwediva is a town in the Oshana Region in the north of Namibia. It is the district capital of the Ongwediva electoral constituency. As of 2023 it had 28,000 inhabitants and covered 4,102 hectares of land. Ongwediva has seven churches, two private schools and 13 government-run schools. Most of the inhabitants speak Oshiwambo.
Fransisco Aupa Indongo, is a Namibian businessman and former politician. He owns Continental Enterprises, Indongo Toyota, Frans Indongo Gardens, Farm Gelukwater, Select Service and Gas Station, Etango Complex in Oshakati and various shares in mining and fishing companies in Namibia. He is the father-in-law of lawyer Sisa Namandje and banker Wosman Hamukonda. He is third on the list of Namibia's top ten richest people, behind the Pupkewitz and Olthaver & List families.
Okaku Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Oshana Region of Namibia. It had 19,262 inhabitants in 2004 and 10,384 registered voters in 2020. Its district capital is the settlement of Okaku. Okaku falls under the Ondonga Traditional Authority.
Ompundja Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Oshana Region of Namibia. It had 4,423 inhabitants in 2004 and 2,520 registered voters in 2020. Its constituency office is situated in Enguwantale.
Oshakati East is an electoral constituency in the Oshana Region of Namibia. It comprises the eastern parts of the town of Oshakati. The constituency had 22,634 inhabitants in 2004 and 19,606 registered voters in 2020.
Oshakati West is an electoral constituency in the Oshana Region of Namibia. It contains the western parts of the town of Oshakati. The constituency had 20,015 inhabitants in 2004 and 15,120 registered voters in 2020.
Uuvudhiya Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Oshana Region of Namibia. The constituency office is situated in Engombe. In 2004 Uuvudhiya had 4,357 inhabitants and 2,869 registered voters.
Okongo is a village in the Ohangwena Region of northern Namibia. It is situated about 120 kilometres (75 mi) east of Eenhana on the tarred road to Nkurenkuru. It is the district capital of Okongo Constituency.
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