Project trip Namibia
At the beginning of April, our founder Dr. Michael Hoppe and board member Andreas Roß traveled to Namibia to visit the six project sites of our organization. The trip was all about exchange, further development and qualitative improvement for the sustainable future development of our projects on site.
steps Namibia
It was especially pleasing to work together with our National Coordinator Sonja Schneider-Waterberg and the local teams to set important personnel priorities for the coming years and thus secure the basis for successful project work. Sonja’s team is being steadily expanded with qualified staff who take care of administrative and bookkeeping tasks in the steps Office in Windhoek, but also organize training and continuing education for our caregivers and teachers to ensure the best possible support for the steps children and young people. An important step toward improving quality and relieving our National Coordinator of her extensive duties.
steps Gobabis
Another highlight of the trip was the inspection of the completed construction project in Gobabis, which will soon be put into operation as a new income-generating step and will benefit the local people. Read more here: Trainee Home Gobabis
On the left you can see the exterior facade designed in steps colors, and on the right one of the multi-bed rooms.
And another construction project in Gobabis was decided upon: the former PC school and carpentry workshop in Gobabis will be converted into another social step: a new preschool is being created. The ideas for the planned conversion to create additional learning rooms as well as for the planned new soup kitchen for external children who suffer from malnutrition and live in particularly needy circumstances were concretized on this trip together with an architect and builder.
Together with an architect, the plans for the soup kitchen
and the conversion of the PC school as well as the former carpentry workshop are being discussed.
steps Ongombombonde
The plot in Ongombombonde, which we have been cultivating with a garden since the project began and on which a kindergarten and a preschool have been established, has now been leased to the steps for children foundation by the municipality for the next 99 years in full. This opens up new possibilities—for example, to obtain water through a borehole and further expand the garden.
Andreas Roß in vegetable cultivation in Ongombombonde – in the background are the pigs, which in a mobile enclosure ensure that the soil on the cultivation area is dug over and fertilized at the same time.
The fence around the property was renewed to keep animals out of the vegetable garden.
13 years ago, a tree was planted here on the steps grounds in Okakarara – today it provides valuable shade!
A meeting with the entire team in Okakarara. steps for children is still one of the largest employers here in the region.
steps Rehoboth
In Rehoboth, the renovation of the soup kitchen could be completed, so that even more children can now be cared for.
This project trip provided valuable insights into the progress and challenges, and once again showed how important direct exchange with the Namibian team on site is. With many new ideas and inspiration in our luggage, we are returning and look forward to implementing the next steps together with the steps teams in Germany, Namibia and our cooperation partners.
