Namibia:
by Bella T., Evelyn, Zelia
Population:In the year 1960, Namibia's population was as little as 0.5 million people. Since then, the population has grown, gaining about 0.5 million people every 10 years. Now Namibia has about 2.3 million people. If you want to look at a graph of Namibia's Population through time, click here.
3 Most Practiced Languages:The Namibian have 13 national languages which include the Oshiwambo languages (48.9%), Nama/Damara (11.3%), Afrikaans (10.4%; it is the common language of most of the population and makes up 60% of the white/caucasian population's language), Otjiherero languages (8.6%), Kavango languages (8.5%), Caprivi languages (4.8%), English (official language and is 3.4%), other African languages (2.3%), other (1.7%)
Major Religions:90% of Namibia's population is made up of Christian belief, and 10% of the population is of other indigenous beliefs, such as Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, and the Baha'i Faith. Lutherans make up at least 50% of the Christian population, making it the largest denomination in that religion. Other Christian denominations include Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and members of the Dutch Reformed Churches.
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General Geography & Environment:Namibia's area is 318,696 miles squared. Namibia is bordered by the two main rivers: The Kunene and The Okavango. It is also bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. Namibia gets about 20 inches of rain a year, but otherwise the land is very baren and many droughts tend to happen.
If you would like to learn more about Namibia's geography click here. Major Ethnicities:87.5%-African American
6%-White/Caucasian 6.5%-Mixed ethnicities 50% of the people in Namibia are part of the Ovambo tribe. 9% are part of the Kavangos tribe. Other ethnic groups are the Herero (7%), the Damara (7%), the Nama (5%), the Caprivan (4%), the Bushman (3%), the Baster (2%), and the Tswana (0.5%). If you want to learn more about Namibia's Ethnicities, click here. The Namibian flag is an important part of their culture. The flags colors represent different themes that are important to the Namibian. The yellow sun represents sunlight in the desert. Blue represents the ocean. Green represents vegetation, red represents blood spilled in war, and white represents peace and reconciliation. Popular Music:
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namibia & Water
Namibia has been facing a problems with accessing sanitary water. Among these include the water crisis in Namibia's capital: Windhoek. The dams created have been losing water because of the lack of` rain due to the drouth. The people of Windhoek were being forced to save at least 10% of their water, due to poor rainy season. In addition to that, 65% of the reserved water could not even sustain the whole population.
In Namibia and even in other countries of the world, it is very hard to acquire water. Every day, in the beginning of the morning, the women have to walk on average, 3 miles to their water source and back, just to get some water. Then, they have to carry more than a gallon of water back in a container called a Jerry Can. By doing this, the women miss a whole morning of education every day. Not only that, but the water also has a likely chance of being polluted with harmful bacteria who carry diseases like cholera and giardiasis. These water-borne diseases can cause diarrhea, vomiting, and if not treated, death.
Another problem of Namibia's water supply is the system most agricultural farmers use, called the flow furrow method, which wastes a lot of water and is very laborious. It’s also very hard to control, and if there is too much water at once, crops can drown and become vulnerable to pests and fungi.
Namibia's water struggles lead to more issues then just poisoning. Citizens often engage in conflict and territorial disputes just for clean water. In 2013, Namibia started the worst drought in decades. During this time, and still to this day, Namibia is struggling to survive.
Other problems in Namibia lead to sickness and death, not just for humans, but also for their cattle. Unclean water leads to agricultural failure, which leads farmers to take their cattle longer distances to let them graze. Eventually, there is no food left for the livestock. Agricultural failure also causes crops to wither and die. Even if they do live and are consumed, they are grown with unclean water. Waterborne diseases cause many village members to get sick.
Unclean water leads to many issues in Namibian society. Thankfully, these problems are being addressed and fixed. For more info, click here.
Some solutions for Namibia's water crisis are to replace and build new advanced water technology, such as drip irrigation lines and water pumps. Since the water crisis is a big problem for farmers, drought resistant livestock and plant breeds, or basic water harvesting technology can make a big difference. These water methods are cheap, simple, and efficient ways of receiving and using water, whether it is for a rural community or a farm.
One small farming town in Namibia near the Angolan border, Outapi, was in a major water crisis. Outapi is one of the hottest places in Northern Namibia, and since Namibia is a place where droughts occur frequently, farmers were having a hard time planting crops. The wilting crops have experienced a difficult time growing, and, as farmer Paulus Amutenya said, "My crops are burning in the field." As 70 percent of Namibia's people rely on agriculture, the water shortages have a major impact on both the farms and the community.
With the help of some organizations, such as the Country Pilot Partnership (CPP), United Nations Development Program (UNDP,) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), Namibia has managed to create and fix new, advanced, water technology like water pumps, in replace of the old, inefficient water methods used previously. The CPP even located 70 water tanks in households, hospitals, and schools, and each tank has a water capacity ranging from 2,500 to 5,000 liters. With water tanks, villagers no longer have to walk long distances, to get water.
The water-efficient drip irrigation method is a major life-changer for farmers especially. Using the drip irrigation method, farmers can conserve valuable water while getting enough water they need for their crops. A farmer's harvest can increase by 10 percent according to a fellow Outapi farmer, Hambiya. With all these water problems fixed, many opportunities can be opened, and many lives can be changed for the better.
To learn more about Namibia's water crisis, water storage and all of the other information listed, click here.
In Namibia and even in other countries of the world, it is very hard to acquire water. Every day, in the beginning of the morning, the women have to walk on average, 3 miles to their water source and back, just to get some water. Then, they have to carry more than a gallon of water back in a container called a Jerry Can. By doing this, the women miss a whole morning of education every day. Not only that, but the water also has a likely chance of being polluted with harmful bacteria who carry diseases like cholera and giardiasis. These water-borne diseases can cause diarrhea, vomiting, and if not treated, death.
Another problem of Namibia's water supply is the system most agricultural farmers use, called the flow furrow method, which wastes a lot of water and is very laborious. It’s also very hard to control, and if there is too much water at once, crops can drown and become vulnerable to pests and fungi.
Namibia's water struggles lead to more issues then just poisoning. Citizens often engage in conflict and territorial disputes just for clean water. In 2013, Namibia started the worst drought in decades. During this time, and still to this day, Namibia is struggling to survive.
Other problems in Namibia lead to sickness and death, not just for humans, but also for their cattle. Unclean water leads to agricultural failure, which leads farmers to take their cattle longer distances to let them graze. Eventually, there is no food left for the livestock. Agricultural failure also causes crops to wither and die. Even if they do live and are consumed, they are grown with unclean water. Waterborne diseases cause many village members to get sick.
Unclean water leads to many issues in Namibian society. Thankfully, these problems are being addressed and fixed. For more info, click here.
Some solutions for Namibia's water crisis are to replace and build new advanced water technology, such as drip irrigation lines and water pumps. Since the water crisis is a big problem for farmers, drought resistant livestock and plant breeds, or basic water harvesting technology can make a big difference. These water methods are cheap, simple, and efficient ways of receiving and using water, whether it is for a rural community or a farm.
One small farming town in Namibia near the Angolan border, Outapi, was in a major water crisis. Outapi is one of the hottest places in Northern Namibia, and since Namibia is a place where droughts occur frequently, farmers were having a hard time planting crops. The wilting crops have experienced a difficult time growing, and, as farmer Paulus Amutenya said, "My crops are burning in the field." As 70 percent of Namibia's people rely on agriculture, the water shortages have a major impact on both the farms and the community.
With the help of some organizations, such as the Country Pilot Partnership (CPP), United Nations Development Program (UNDP,) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), Namibia has managed to create and fix new, advanced, water technology like water pumps, in replace of the old, inefficient water methods used previously. The CPP even located 70 water tanks in households, hospitals, and schools, and each tank has a water capacity ranging from 2,500 to 5,000 liters. With water tanks, villagers no longer have to walk long distances, to get water.
The water-efficient drip irrigation method is a major life-changer for farmers especially. Using the drip irrigation method, farmers can conserve valuable water while getting enough water they need for their crops. A farmer's harvest can increase by 10 percent according to a fellow Outapi farmer, Hambiya. With all these water problems fixed, many opportunities can be opened, and many lives can be changed for the better.
To learn more about Namibia's water crisis, water storage and all of the other information listed, click here.
Photographs are courtesy of the following websites:
http://www.namibian.org/
http://worldbookonline.com/student/article?id=ar380670&st=namibia#tab=homepage
http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Namibia.html http://knownamibia.com/
http://www.everyculture.com/Ma-Ni/Namibia.html https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/wa.html
http://www.charitywater.org/
http://www.worldwater.org/data.html
http://www2.worldwater.org/conflict/list/
http://www.namibian.org/
http://worldbookonline.com/student/article?id=ar380670&st=namibia#tab=homepage
http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Namibia.html http://knownamibia.com/
http://www.everyculture.com/Ma-Ni/Namibia.html https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/wa.html
http://www.charitywater.org/
http://www.worldwater.org/data.html
http://www2.worldwater.org/conflict/list/