Introduction

Namibia is today a lower middle income country with an average per capita income of US$ 3210. The country has however one the highest rate of inequality in the world, with parts of the society having standards of living equal to levels to be found in the West and parts of the society experiencing level of poverty to be found in the more impoverished parts of Southern Africa; two thirds of the population, mostly black are considered poor.

In Namibia’s north-east lies one of the country’s poorest and most disadvantaged areas, the Kavango Region of Namibia with its regional capital, Rundu.

The northern eastern Kavango Region, which is one of Namibia’s thirteen political regions, covers an area of 48,463 km2, about 6% of Namibia total surface; it is 7,000 km2 larger then Switzerland and has a population of just 202,000 representing 11% of Namibia total population. 32,6% of the population that lives below the poverty line; 37% of the regional population lives in Rundu that with a population of about 72,000 inhabitants, is the biggest urban area in the region and the second biggest town in the country. This town and the wider region are hard hit by extreme poverty, high unemployment and its dire consequences before all HIV/AIDS. The infection rates in Rundu lies at 21.5 percent, in other terms 15 500 people in Rundu only, are living with AIDS. One of the serious social problems directly linked with that is the high number of vulnerable and orphaned children. Overall it has been estimated by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare, that in Namibia today there 143,777 orphans of which 66,000 caused by the HIV deaths almost only in the Kavango region there are 13,000 orphans most of them without proper care and assistance. These figures justify the attention that the ERTS has given to the region.

It is in this context that the Eagles Rock Tours & Safari decided in the year 2006 to take up the challenge and be more active in social activities in the region. The encounter with Father Thomas, a missionary of the Salesians of Don Bosco, based in Rundu, has given the concrete possibility to get involved in the realisation of developmental projects in the area.

Father Thomas, for more then 10 years dedicated his work to the development, empowerment and encouragement of the disadvantaged and underprivileged in the Kavango region. Although he has left the country in July 2007 to continue his missionary activities in Ethiopia, his work continue in the activities KeTuKo is implementing in the Kavango.

Kehemu Tuzeni Komeho