![\"AI](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/nambian-ai-article-placeholder.png\")
<\/p>\nSometimes, When You don\u2019t say thank you, you may miss the opportunity to see anything positive.<\/p>\n
At this juncture, I wish to express my heartfelt appreciation to president Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah for her historic declaration that tertiary education will be free for Namibians from this year. <\/p>\n
It is a warm-hearted initiative and a bold step toward social equity.<\/p>\n
Yet, as we celebrate this noble achievement, a deeper concern about those the policy unintentionally leaves behind tugs at the conscience.<\/p>\n
Consider the students who dropped out due to financial hardship. <\/p>\n
Many wander the streets today, haunted by the shame of leaving university because their families could not pay fees.<\/p>\n
For them, hearing of this noble policy, only to realise it does not cater to them, means the door remains closed. <\/p>\n
The hunger, the exclusion, the sense of being left behind \u2013 this is a severe reality for too many dropouts.<\/p>\n
The human cost of exclusion is high. According to the Namibia Statistics Agency, nearly 42% of young people aged 15-24 are not in employment, education, or training. <\/p>\n
This includes those who left schools or universities early due to poverty or other hardships.<\/p>\n
Namibia cannot afford to leave this talent unused. <\/p>\n
Many dropouts have the potential to contribute to high-demand sectors such as science, technology, engineering, mathematics, healthcare, and entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n
By excluding them, we risk wasting human capital and entrenching inequality, undermining the very goals of free education. <\/p>\n
Access to education is a clear determinant: Young people with tertiary education face an unemployment rate of 8.8%, compared with 34.3% for those with only primary education.<\/p>\n
Beyond economics, there is a moral and constitutional imperative. Education is enshrined in our Constitution as a right, not a privilege. <\/p>\n
A policy that leaves behind students who struggled to stay in or return to higher education risks violating the spirit of social equity. <\/p>\n
Free education should not be a selective privilege; it should uplift every Namibian with the drive and will to learn.<\/p>\n
Even for those who successfully pursue first qualifications, the exclusion of postgraduate funding limits the nation\u2019s future capacity. <\/p>\n
If we want a Namibia equipped with innovators, healthcare leaders, engineers, and entrepreneurs, we must ensure pathways to advanced studies are accessible.<\/p>\n
Her excellency\u2019s initiative is noble, but to build a truly inclusive Namibia, we must ensure that no Namibian dreamer is left behind.<\/p>\n
This requires expanding the policy to include students who dropped out due to financial hardship and those pursuing postgraduate or high-demand fields.<\/p>\n
We must embrace second chances, not as charity, but as a fundamental element of national development and human dignity. <\/p>\n
True progress will come only when every Namibian with ambition, resilience, and the courage to learn can climb the ladder of education.
\u2013 Hidipo Hamata<\/p>\n
In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian\u2019s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours \u2013 occasionally with a light, witty touch.
\nIt\u2019s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
The Namibian uses AI tools to assist with improved quality, accuracy and efficiency,
\n\t\t\t\t\t\twhile
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tmaintaining editorial oversight and journalistic integrity.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tStay informed with The Namibian \u2013 your source for credible journalism. Get in-depth reporting and opinions for
\n\t\t\t\tonly N$85 a month. Invest in journalism, invest in democracy \u2013
Subscribe Now!<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sometimes, When You don\u2019t say thank you, you may miss the opportunity to see anything positive. At this…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16633,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[102],"class_list":{"0":"post-16632","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-namibia","8":"tag-namibia"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16632","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16632"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16632\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16633"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16632"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16632"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16632"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}