In this modern age, it is in Africa that the poor are made to face life with difficulty. This is not peculiar to one country on the black continent, the level of poverty and the abject conditions may however be different from one country to the other.
The story of Nguryoma Fwengo is so pathetic as reported by The Namibian. On that fateful day, Fwengo is seen standing in front of her house at the Etunda irrigation project near Ruacana in the Omusati region. Omusati is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Outapi.
The shelter is made of old clothes, cardboard boxes and plastic bags. She shares this refuge with her husband and six children.
Fwengo, who is currently pregnant, says they sleep on the floor without a mattress or blankets to keep them warm.
The family has travelled hundreds of kilometres from Okoroko village in southern Angola to Namibia in search of food.
Fwengo does not know how old she is or when she will give birth.
She has never attended school.
She says her family is suffering from a skin disease they are struggling to get rid of.
The nurses at the nearby clinic have told them they did not have medication to treat the disease, she says.
“We need blankets, food, clothes, and Vaseline or animal fat for our bodies,” she says.
When The Namibian visited the Angolan nationals at Etunda in March, they claimed clinic staff are refusing to attend to them since they cannot pay them.
Nghitua Munyondo, another Angolan national in Namibia, also sleeps on the floor of her house with her two children.
Her son, a toddler, has sores on his legs and feet.
Munyondo says this is due to the drought.
Namibians in the north have been helping Angolan nationals with food.
Last week Eagle FM donated an ox to more than 2 300 Angolans. The radio station is a commercial talk show radio with office in Windhoek and Ondangwa, Namibia.
This followed a request by the Vatela Oshiwana Foundation to John Walenga, the radio station’s owner.
The foundation donated food, clothes and tents to the foreigners.
Omusati governor Erginus Endjala, Uukolonkadhi senior traditional councillors, and Ombadja Traditional Authority chief Mathias Walaula received the donations on behalf of the group.
Endjala cautioned that the drought in the oil-rich south-west African country should not be politicised.
He said a politician from an opposition party in Angola visited the Angolans at Etunda in March and allegedly made political statements and urged them to vote wisely when they go back to Angola.
Endjala said some Namibians are not happy that the government is assisting the hungry Angolans.
He said Namibians spent 23 years in Angola fighting for their independence, but Angolans never complained.
“These people have only been here for six months, and people are beginning to say government programmes, such as drought relief in the region, have been diverted to Angolan nationals when they are also hungry. It’s not true. Government programmes remain the same,” Endjala said.
Speaking at the same occasion Walaula implored Namibians to help the destitute group at Etunda, because Namibia may face the same situation.
“We should not think we are immune to drought. The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform must work hard to ensure it protects Namibians from hunger,” he said.
