6 November 2009
Windhoek — The word "Women" in Women Action for Development (WAD) has always labelled this non-governmental organisation an exclusive female entity.
However, this is all in the past according the group's head Veronica de Klerk. She also revealed that the community development organisation also changed the name of its rural community representatives from Women's Voice to Community Voice. This is a sure sign, she says which shows that WAD is meant to benefit all underprivileged Namibians.
"We are very inclusive, anybody uneducated, poor and unskilled is welcome, this is our only requirement," she says.
De Klerk said her organisation has come a long way from its foundation 14 years ago to today when she says it boasts a well-established infrastructure in all constituencies around the country.
"We have offices in every region of the country," she said.
"The offices are managed by Community Voice who act as a liaison of their community at the grass-roots level, to the decision-makers in identifying training needs and developmental concerns.
De Klerk says that the Community Voice is the linchpin of the organisation's work because it offers a local perspective like no other.
"Community Voice forms the core of our work," she said. They assess training, HIV/AIDS, counselling, and development needs in general.
She further says her office gets information from the people on the ground in the rural areas and does not play experts before it is well informed.
"The head office does not just sit and decide for the people, they channel to us their specific issues from their specific communities and then we take it from there."
De Klerk calls what WAD offers people as "practical skills". She says these skills that people gain from the different programmes offered make immediate positive effects in their lives.
She cited an example of a four-year computer literacy training programme in Rehoboth. She says 70% of the 3000 people who went through the programme now have jobs, a thing she says would have been difficult without WAD.
De Klerk said it hurts her when she has to turn away some people from a training programme because of lack of money and says WAD would do more if more funds were available.
"Sometimes when we target to train 50 people, for example, a hundred would turn up and it hurts me to have to turn people away," she says.
"I know we are doing good in our communities," she says. I am very pleased with how we have grown and spread our wings throughout the country from 14 years ago".
"We see the difference in a woman's confidence after the training, she can now stand in front of a large group and give a presentation, a thing most women could not do before," de Klerk said.
De Klerk also revealed that as of early next year, WAD will launch a training programme which will see former students who earned an A symbol get trained to become trainers. The successful candidates will train people from their community of origin.
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