Driving positive change to empower Namibians

Appointed in June as Hyphen's community relationship manager for Hardap Region, Richie Mutendere believes his past experiences helped him land his current position. Mutendere's career began as an administrative officer in 2007 at the environment, forestry and tourism ministry at Etosha National Park's Okaukuejo camp. Daily interactions with park rangers and wardens provided him with a sense of belonging and fostered a love for nature. In 2010, he pursued a degree in natural resource management at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST).While studying, he worked in different national parks and the wildlife management unit in Windhoek during his holidays.After graduating, he also worked as a park warden at the Tsau ?Khaeb (Sperrgebiet) National Park, where he was based in Lüderitz.Some of his other roles included stakeholder engagement and community beneficiation with the environment ministry.He left in 2018, but says his love for people and nature took him back to the community-based natural resource management programme with the Namibia Development Trust (NDT).Here, he provided support to community-based communities in the Hardap and ||Karas regions, mainly in governance and financial management, business and enterprise development, and ensuring maximum beneficiation of communities from natural resources. Finding solutions He believes these experiences prepared him for his current position at Hyphen.As a community relationship manager for Hardap, he fosters positive relationships with local communities, organisations and stakeholders while supporting the Hyphen project's environmental workstream.Mutendere says his passion has always been finding solutions to help people benefit from Namibia's natural riches."Climate change has brought drought, which hampers food production and human health. The renewable energy sector is playing a vital role in climate change mitigation, which will allow us to find more opportunities that benefit the most vulnerable in our society. I am at Hyphen because I believe our sector can make a huge difference to people's lives," he said.Mutendere says his dream is to see a time when every household in Namibia has three meals a day and to observe socio-economic development for the people of Namibia. He says close-knit projects with Hyphen and the government have the potential to change the country and create real benefits, which will then make his dream a reality. While Mutendere is inspired by the socio-economic development framework of Hyphen, he is motivated to drive positive change that will empower Namibians, especially those at the grassroots level.Mutendere considers himself a "nature boy" who loves being outdoors. He enjoys taking time to reflect, think, plan and read and he likes watching agricultural YouTube videos. He also loves having a braai with his wife.

Driving positive change to empower Namibians

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Driving positive change to empower Namibians

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