Otjozondjupa Region

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Otjozondjupa Region
Otjozondjupa in Namibia.svg
Location of the Otjozondjupa Region in Namibia
Country Namibia
Capital Otjiwarongo
Government
  Governor James Uerikua [1]
Area
[2]
  Total105,460 km2 (40,720 sq mi)
Population
 (2023 census) [3] [4]
  Total220,811
  Density2.1/km2 (5.4/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+2 (CAT)
HDI (2017)0.648 [5]
medium · 6th
Website otjozondjuparc.gov.na
Unusual Fluorite specimen from Okorusu Mine, Otjiwarongo Constituency, Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia. Size: 12.9 x 10.4 x 4.9 cm Fluorite-121919.jpg
Unusual Fluorite specimen from Okorusu Mine, Otjiwarongo Constituency, Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia. Size: 12.9 × 10.4 × 4.9 cm

Otjozondjupa is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia. Its capital is Otjiwarongo. The region further contains the municipalities of Okahandja and Grootfontein and the towns Okakarara and Otavi. As of 2020, Otjozondjupa had 97,945 registered voters. [6]

Contents

Geography

A landmark within this region is the Waterberg Plateau Park. Twenty four kilometres west of Grootfontein lies the huge Hoba meteorite. At over 60 tons, it is the largest known meteorite on Earth, as well as the largest naturally occurring mass of iron known to exist on the planet's surface.

In the east, Otjozondjupa borders the North-West District of Botswana. Domestically, it borders more regions than any other region of Namibia:

Economy and infrastructure

Hoba meteorite near Grootfontein (2014) Hoba meteorite, Namibia (2014).jpg
Hoba meteorite near Grootfontein (2014)

Otjiwarongo, Grootfontein, Otavi, and Okahandja are linked by rail and by the main B1 and B8 trunk roads running from south to north. Communication systems in these areas are also of a high standard.

The farming activities of Okahandja and Otjiwarongo are homogeneous as these parts are well known for cattle farming. The Otavi and Grootfontein districts, and to a lesser extent also Otjiwarongo, are the granary of Namibia. The region also has a great potential to establish industries connected with such farming activities and by-products of it. It further has the advantage of combining communal and commercial farming in the same region.

According to the 2012 Namibia Labour Force Survey, unemployment in the region is 25.3%. [7] Otjozondjupa has 72 schools with a total of 36,284 pupils. [8]

Politics

The region comprises seven constituencies:

Regional elections

Otjozondjupa is one of a few Namibian regions where there is considerable opposition support. In the 2004 regional election for the National Assembly of Namibia, the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) won in six of the seven constituencies, Okakarara was won by National Unity Democratic Organisation (NUDO). [9]

The 2015 regional elections saw SWAPO obtain 58.4% of the votes cast (2010: 48.9%) [6] and win five of the seven constituencies. NUDO won two, Okakarara and Omatako. [10] [11] The same two constituencies went to NUDO again in the 2020 regional election. SWAPO's support dropped to 44.3%, but it won the other five constituencies again. NUDO overall obtained 14.1% of the popular vote in this election. The upstart Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), an opposition party formed in August 2020, obtained 12.9% overall, and the Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) got 11.9%, but both did not get close to winning any single constituency. [6]

Governors

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grootfontein</span> City in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia

Grootfontein is a city with 26,839 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia. It is one of the three towns in the Otavi Triangle, situated on the B8 national road that leads from Otavi to the Caprivi Strip.

Okahandja is a city of 45,159 inhabitants in Otjozondjupa Region, central Namibia, and the district capital of the Okahandja electoral constituency. It is known as the Garden Town of Namibia. It is located 70 km north of Windhoek on the B1 road. It was founded around 1800, by two local groups, the Herero and the Nama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otjiwarongo</span> City in Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia

Otjiwarongo is a city of 49,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It is the district capital of the Otjiwarongo electoral constituency and also the capital of Otjozondjupa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otavi</span> Town in Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia

Otavi is a town with 10,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. Situated 360 km north of Windhoek, it is the district capital of the Otavi electoral constituency.

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Okakarara is a town in Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia, located 50 kilometres (31 mi) southeast of Waterberg National Park. It has an estimated population of 7,000 and is currently growing by 1,500 inhabitants annually.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grootfontein Constituency</span> Electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa region of Namibia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okahandja Constituency</span> Electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa region of Namibia

Okahandja Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It had 18,155 inhabitants in 2004 and 18,109 registered voters in 2020. The constituency consists of the town of Okahandja and the surrounding rural area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okakarara Constituency</span> Electoral constituency in Namibia

Okakarara Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It had 21,336 inhabitants in 2004 and 16,221 registered voters in 2020. The constituency consists of the town of Okakarara and the surrounding rural area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omatako Constituency</span> Electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa region of Namibia

Omatako Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It had 11,998 inhabitants in 2004 and 7,372 registered voters in 2020. The constituency is entirely rural with commercial farms accounting for 95% of its 24,879 square kilometres (9,606 sq mi) area. The constituency office is situated at Okandjira, the constituency's only proclaimed settlement. Other populated places are Kalkfeld, Hochfeld and Ovitoto, as well as the Osire refugee camp and the Osona military base. Omatako Constituency is named after the Omatako Mountains, a prominent geological feature of the constituency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otavi Constituency</span> Electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa region of Namibia

Otavi Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It had 11,620 inhabitants in 2004 and 9,608 registered voters in 2020. The constituency consists of the town of Otavi and the surrounding rural area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otjiwarongo Constituency</span> Electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa region of Namibia

Otjiwarongo Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It had 22,614 inhabitants in 2004 and 22,931 registered voters in 2020. The constituency consists of the town of Otjiwarongo and the surrounding rural area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tsumkwe Constituency</span> Electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa region of Namibia

Tsumkwe Constituency is an electoral constituency in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It had 8,823 inhabitants in 2004 and 7,075 registered voters in 2020. About 2,400 San people live in this constituency. The constituency consists of the settlement of Tsumkwe and the surrounding rural area.

Otto Ipinge is a Namibian politician. A member of SWAPO, Ipinge is the former mayor of Otjiwarongo. As mayor, Ipinge focused on attracting investment to the city, effective management and efficiency as well as increasing tourism, agriculture and mineral management. As of June 2009, he was the electoral coordinator for SWAPO in his native Otjozondjupa Region. Prior to the 2009 general election, Ipinge was placed on SWAPO's electoral list at number 61. However, SWAPO only received enough votes for 54 seats and Ipinge was not elected to the National Assembly. Ipinge was subsequently elected as the regional councillor for Otjiwarongo Constituency in the 2010 regional elections. In April 2015, Ipinge was appointed governor of the Otjozondjupa Region. He served in this position until 2020.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Goodbye". Namibian Sun . 10 April 2020. p. 1.
  2. "Namibia's Population by Region". Election Watch (1). Institute for Public Policy Research: 3. 2013.
  3. "Otjozondjupa 2011 Census Regional Profile" (PDF). Statistics Namibia. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  4. "2023 Population & Housing Census Preliminary Report" (PDF). Statistics Namibia.
  5. "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  6. 1 2 3 "Regional Council 2020 Election Results". Interactive map. Electoral Commission of Namibia. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  7. Duddy, Jo Maré (11 April 2013). "Unemployment rate still alarmingly high". The Namibian . Archived from the original on 14 April 2013.
  8. Miyanicwe, Clemans; Kahiurika, Ndanki (27 November 2013). "School counsellors overstretched". The Namibian . p. 1.
  9. "Electoral Act, 1992: Notification of Result of General Election for Regional Councils" (PDF). Government Gazette of the Republic of Namibia. No. 3366. Government of Namibia. 3 January 2005. p. 13.
  10. "Regional Council Election Results 2015". Electoral Commission of Namibia. 3 December 2015. pp. 20–21. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015.
  11. Menges, Werner (29 November 2015). "Mixed results for opposition in regional polls". The Namibian .
  12. Haufiku, Mathias (2013-03-25). "Namibia: Governor Kamehozu Loses Battle Against Cancer" . New Era . AllAfrica.com . Retrieved 2013-03-25.
  13. "President announces governors". The Namibian . 10 April 2015. Archived from the original on 14 April 2015.

19°15′S17°42′E / 19.250°S 17.700°E / -19.250; 17.700