Telecom Namibia recently awarded annual bursaries to 13 students to study in science related fields at three leading institutions in southern Africa.

Certificates were presented to the students by the Minister of Education Nangolo Mbumba at a special ceremony held on 9 February 2009.

The latest handover brings the total number of students receiving bursaries from Telecom Namibia to 36 this academic year costing the company N$1,6-million.

A total of N$4.84-million will cater for the tuition, books, monthly allowances, accommodation, meals and travelling of these students over the next three years.

Minister Mbumba commended Telecom Namibia for its continued investment in education and contribution to the country's human resource development agenda.

"By investing in our people we send positive signals out there that we are serious and prepared to play a major role in our own development," Mbumba said.

The Education Minister urged more Namibian companies to emulate Telecom Namibia in order to help alleviate skills shortage facing the country.

"When more and more companies begin to invest in our youth in the way that Telecom Namibia is doing we should be able to meet the human resource development goals of Vision 2030," Mbumba said.

The Minister also urged the students to take full advantage of the awarded bursaries by making sure they do well in their studies.

"You must appreciate the fortunate situation in which you find yourselves, because winning a good bursary does not come easily. This is not a gift it is an assignment for you to study hard. You are sponsored by a Namibian telecommunications company, so you must carry this brand."

Telecom Namibia board chairman Joseph Iita said that the company is convinced that human resource development is a long-term investment which needs a continuous and systematic development programme in anticipation of changing business needs.

Added Iita: "Our commitment is derived from our belief that human resources are a strategic asset that provides the company with competition excellence needed to achieve maximum performance."

The awarded students are Eliaser Jonas, Shalumbu Namutenya, Rumenicke Eiseb, Michelle Handura, Karembera Reinhard, Nakanyala Heikki, Shipena Johanna, Elia Sangunji, Sakaria Naemi, Elizabeth Ekandjo, Katrina Shivute, Munekamba Lorna and Muufika Nande.

Seven the recipients will study Electronic Engineering, four opted for Information Technology, while two are in Accounting.

With the exception of one who will be studying in South Africa, the remaining 12 students will study at the University of Namibia and the Polytechnic of Namibia.

Telecom Namibia customers are being targeted by fraudsters posing as employees of our company, telling them that they have been "overcharged" and a rebate on their telephone account needed to be paid to them.

Such attempts to dupe Telecom Namibia customers have been reported in several towns in the Karas, Hardap and Erongo regions of the country.

In all incidences, the mysterious callers requested the unsuspecting customers for their bank account details, claiming that Telecom Namibia has had a "problem" on its billing system and have thus "overcharged" them, and then promising to refund them as soon they get the bank details.

Telecom Namibia does not do refunds on customer accounts without a physically visit from the customer himself/herself to one of our Teleshop where he/she is required to complete a credit refund form.

Fraud over telephone, SMS and emails has unfortunately become a reality in this information age. These criminals have no conscience and will go full speed in trying all sorts of tricks to rip off any member of the public.

We sincerely advise all our customers to be careful not to divulge any confidential information to unknown persons masquerading as Telecom Namibia employees. Customers who will be approached in such a way are encouraged to capture the number of the calling party and report such a case to Telecom Namibia immediately for further investigation.

Customers can make inquiries about suspicious calls to the Customer Contact Centre at 1100.

WINDHOEK - The Ministry of Information and Communication Technology is working towards a plan to advance Information Communication Technology (ICT), as the most important economic sector in the country.

A staggering N$320 million has been earmarked over the next five years, to fulfil this Vision 2030 objective that wants to see Namibian-based ICT service companies as competitive players on international markets, exporting to a large extent tailor-made hardware and software to the global market using electronic business.

The amount excludes the annual subsidies to parastatals such as the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation, the Namibian Press Agency, New Era Publications Corporation and NamZim Newspapers.

Line minister, Joel Kaapanda, says the targets set for the ICT sector in Vision 2030 are eight years behind schedule.

"By 2010, which is next year, Vision 2030 wants to see achievements in the ICT sector that include massive foreign investments in research institutions in Namibia," Kaapanda said.

The goal is to have Internet access in virtually all rural areas through the deployment of innovative technology, and government institutions that provide e-business services to the Namibian public and foreign investors.

"It is no secret that Namibia was once a leader in this sector in SADC and on the African continent. Unfortunately, our ratings have dropped," Kaapanda remarked.

He said although the country's telephone and cellular infrastructure is still among the highest on the continent, it is lagging behind in policy implementation, legal and regulatory frameworks, access for all, affordability and human resource capacity.

Kaapanda attributes this to the sector that was fragmented until last year with the creation of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, resulting in important sectoral functions coming together under one roof.

The minister said what now remains is to adopt the ministry's strategic plan, implement the ministry's mandate and create a statutory inter-ministerial ICT coordinating body.

"This body must consult and plan together to ensure that the available financial resources are used to best serve the nation and to bring an end to the costly duplication of services," Kaapanda added.

Regarding the Vision 2030 backlog, Kaapanda said it is not necessary to despair although the backlog is huge.

He said the ministry has, during the current financial year, invested time in the review, update and development of the ICT Policy, the Telecommunication Policy, Postal Policy, Broadcasting Policy and an Overarching ICT Policy.

The long-awaited Information Communication Bill, expected to create an autonomous regulator, levelling playing fields in the communication industry has been finalised and might be enacted during the first sitting of Parliament this year.

Cabinet has also guaranteed N$250 million for the construction of an undersea cable that will enhance broadband access and bring a landing point to Namibia.

The completion of the cable is expected to increase Internet speed and enhance access at more affordable prices.

Kaapanda, who was speaking at the stakeholders' meeting on the ministry's five-year strategic plan, said although a lot of groundwork has been done to position Namibia in the international information society, the industry faces serious challenges.

He said challenges are the approval of the ministerial structure, attracting and retaining the necessary human capacity to implement and drive the development and growth of the ICT sector and an adequate budgetary allocation for the 2009/10 and future financial years.