Keetmanshoop: Vice President, Lucia Witbooi, on Wednesday commenced a four-day working visit to the Hardap and ||Kharas regions, focusing on infrastructure development and the inauguration of the N.dollars 100 million Keetmanshoop Vocational Training Centre (KVTC).

According to Namibia Press Agency, the visit began in Mariental, where Witbooi officiated the launch of the Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF) Pension-Backed Home Loan Scheme.

She is expected to travel to Keetmanshoop on Thursday for the official opening of the KVTC, which admitted its first intake of 253 trainees in February. The centre is designed to equip young Namibians with technical skills aligned to the southern energy corridor, with a focus on the green hydrogen and oil and gas sectors.

KVTC Centre Manager Benedictus Diergaardt said the facility will prepare youth for employment opportunities in emerging industries. "The aim is to focus on sectors like oil and gas and green hydrogen, and to prepare the youth so they can be absorbed by stakeholders for jobs. We hope this will address the high unemployment rate, especially among young people in the southern regions and the country at large," he said.

He added that the curriculum is structured to meet industry needs, with programmes including solar installation and maintenance, as well as water sanitation and desalination. Diergaardt noted that the centre is in the process of securing certification for its programmes and qualifications to ensure compliance with national standards.

Following the Keetmanshoop engagement, Witbooi will travel to Karasburg on Friday, where she is scheduled to hold a consultative meeting with the Bondelswarts Traditional Authority and visit the Gabes settlement to assess community development progress.

The visit will conclude on Saturday in Karasburg, where the Vice President will deliver the keynote address at the regional Independence Day celebrations under the theme 'Beyond 35 for a Prosperous Future'. The ||Kharas Regional Council has confirmed that Independence Day celebrations will be held simultaneously across all regions this year, a move aimed at promoting national inclusivity.