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Opuwo

Coordinates: 18°3′20″S 13°50′26″E / 18.05556°S 13.84056°E / -18.05556; 13.84056
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Opuwo
Town
Town of Opuwo
aerial view of Opuwo
aerial view of Opuwo
Opuwo is located in Namibia
Opuwo
Opuwo
Location in Namibia
Coordinates: 18°3′20″S 13°50′26″E / 18.05556°S 13.84056°E / -18.05556; 13.84056
Country Namibia
RegionKunene Region
ConstituencyOpuwo
Area
 • Total
3.82 sq mi (9.89 km2)
Population
 (2023 census)[1][2]
 • Total
12,335
 • Density3,200/sq mi (1,200/km2)
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Area code065
ClimateBWh

Opuwo is the capital of the Kunene Region in north-western Namibia. The town is situated about 720 km north-northwest of the capital Windhoek, and has a population of around 12,300 (2023). It is the commercial hub of the Kunene Region.

Economy and infrastructure

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Opuwo is situated at the intersection of the C41 and C43. There is a small airfield in town, the Opuwo Airport.[3]

Putuavanga Senior Secondary School in town is among the best government schools in the Kunene Region. There is also the Opuwo Primary School with 39 teachers and 1,200 learners.[4]

The following organizations and offices are situated in the town: Opuwo Police Station, Opuwo District Hospital, Ministry of Home Affairs (Department of Civic Affairs / Regional Civic Registration Office / Kunene Region) and Opuwo Department of Works. There is a Christian church.[5]

Opuwo Country Lodge

Politics

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Opuwo is governed by a town council that has seven seats.[6]

Electoral history

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2020 local authority election[7]
Party Votes Seats
Popular Democratic Movement 1376 4
SWAPO 1127 3
National Unity Democratic Organisation 128 0
Independent Patriots for Change 120 0
Rally for Democracy and Progress 46 0
Namibian Economic Freedom Fighters 15 0
2015 local authority election[8]
Party Votes Seats
Democratic Turnhalle Alliance 1504 3
National Unity Democratic Organisation 155 0
Rally for Democracy and Progress 44 0
2004 local authority election[9]
Party Votes Seats
Democratic Turnhalle Alliance 538 2
Congress of Democrats 396 2
National Unity Democratic Organisation 259 1
Mayors
Name Term Party
Uaurikua Kakuva June 2004 – 2010 DTA [10][11]
Pieter de Villiers June 2006-? CoD [12]
Tuarungua Kavari 2010-15 SWAPO [13][14][15]
Albert Tjiuma December 2015 - December 2020 SWAPO [16]
Rosa Mbinge-Tjeundo December 2020 - Current PDM [17][18]

History

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Etymology

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The name Opuwo was given by the commissioner of Ondangwa, Hugo Hahn, who came in search of land to build an office. Upon his arrival, he asked local headmen to give him land where he could build an office. The headmen gave him a small plot, and when the headmen tried to give him more land, Mr. Hahn responded saying "Opuwo (it’s enough for me). I don’t want any more land". That is how Opuwo got its name. The local residents of Opuwo called it Otjihinamaparero at the time, and some still call it that.[19]

Hugo Hahn called the land "Ohopoho Otjitopora", which means "they see the bore hole and their water comes out". The name Otjihinamaparero was changed to Opuwo in 1974 due to orthographic reform.

Colonial administration

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The first office to be established in the Kaokoland area was the colonial administrative office in Swartbooisdrift on the banks of the Kunene River. This was the administrative centre of the area from 1925 to 1939. Afterwards, administrative control of the area shifted to Ohopoho, later called Opuwo.

The police station in Swartbooisdrift was run by Sergeant Herbert, and his aim was to receive the Angola Boers who had trekked to Angola out of refusal to accept the British government in South Africa. Sergeant Basson took over the office at Swartbooisdrift, and excavated Opuwo's first bore hole. Basson had the nickname “Katjiriamakaja” (a person who eats tobacco).

Culture

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The Opuwo Town Council hosts the annual Opuwo Trade Fair, which was launched in 2012. The festival combines a modern business exhibition with cultural performances, live shows and entertainment. The Opuwo Trade Fair takes place in the month of May.[20]

Herero woman in Opuwo

References

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  1. ^ "Table 4.2.2 Urban population by Census years (2001 and 2011)" (PDF). Namibia 2011 - Population and Housing Census Main Report. Namibia Statistics Agency. p. 39. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
  2. ^ "2023 Population & Housing Census Preliminary Report" (PDF). Statistics Namibia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  3. ^ Airport information for OPW at Great Circle Mapper.
  4. ^ "Kunene schools overcrowded". The Namibian. Nampa. 11 January 2017. p. 5.
  5. ^ "The photographs of Opuwo, October 2017". Independent Travellers. independent-travellers.com. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
  6. ^ "Know Your Local Authority". Election Watch. No. 3. Institute for Public Policy Research. 2015. p. 4.
  7. ^ "2020 Local Authority Elections Results and Allocation of Seats" (PDF). Electoral Commission of Namibia. 29 November 2020. p. 9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 January 2021.
  8. ^ "Local elections results". Electoral Commission of Namibia. p. 4. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  9. ^ "Local elections results" (PDF). Electoral Commission of Namibia. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 March 2023.
  10. ^ Dentlinger, Lindsay (8 June 2004). "Opuwo councillors take oath, Swapo to head to court". The Namibian. Archived from the original on 13 September 2017.
  11. ^ "Opuwo Rural Constituency Councillor has died | nbc". 14 May 2023. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  12. ^ "Why Was Opuwo's Mayor Absent?". New Era Live. 19 September 2006. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023.
  13. ^ "Swapo, PDM Exposes Each Other Over "Baffling" Past Land Dealings at Opuwo – Eagle FM". 26 April 2023. Archived from the original on 26 April 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  14. ^ "Kavari re-elected as Opuwo mayor". 14 May 2023. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  15. ^ "Home".
  16. ^ "Tjiuma re-elected as Opuwo mayor - Namibia News Digest". 14 May 2023. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  17. ^ "Opuwo mayor marks 100 days in office - Namibia News Digest". 14 May 2023. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  18. ^ "Opuwo Re-Elect's Mbinge-Tjeundo As Mayor – Eagle FM". 14 May 2023. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  19. ^ Hihanguapo. M.(2000).How Opuwo got its name. In G. Miescher & D. Henrichesen (Eds.), New notes on Kaoko (p. 9). Basel: Basler Afrika Bibliographien.
  20. ^ "Home". opuwo.info.
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