Dâures to spearhead trendsetting development

Curbing carbon emissions
The Dâures community are stakeholders in a project that will see the constituency becoming the location of the first net zero village on the African continent.
Otis Daniels
Efforts to establish Africa’s first net zero village in the Dâures constituency officially kicked off on Friday.

The four-phase project is projected to be done by 2032. The first phase (2022-2023) involves the drilling of commercial boreholes for the sourcing of water supply for the project and the construction of a reverse osmosis facility of 120 cubic metres.

VARIOUS PROJECTS COMING

Speaking on the occasion, Till Mansmann, the innovation commissioner for green hydrogen at the German federal ministry of education and research (BMBF), highlighted that four German-Namibian pilot projects on green hydrogen are in the pipeline. “The Daures project was the first of the pilot projects to be approved and has already progressed a step further. Funding worth 12 million euros will be used to get the required building equipment here, on the ground.”

The other two projects will focus on reducing the carbon footprint of the Walvis Bay port. “These projects will see the construction of a hydrogen refuelling system and a hydrogen truck port. These will be the first African port projects of this kind. The third project will focus on developing the first locomotives capable of operating on both diesel and hydrogen fuels.”

NET ZERO

Mansmann said the groundbreaking ceremony for the Daures Green Hydrogen Village project marks the start and the laying of the foundation of the first net zero village in Africa. “The net carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of the village will be zero and this approach effectively counteracts the accumulation of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere - assisting with the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as it is produced.”

Other highlights include air-conditioned greenhouses with hydrogen-powered fuel cells supplying the energy. “People here will be the first to harvest an estimated 500 tonnes of tomatoes and 600 tonnes of carrots grown climate neutrally per year. For this to work, we need green hydrogen and green ammonia. Namibia has enormous potential to produce both locally and at low cost.”

KEEP IT LOCAL

Dâure Daman traditional authority chief Zacharias Seibeb urged the developers of the Daures Green Hydrogen Village to ensure that all people rightfully benefit from the opportunities the project will bring about. “Many projects come to areas and setup. When the owners of these projects want land or support, they say all the right things. After the projects commence, we sometimes do not hear from the initial people who applied and made promises and commitments. We want to see progress and real change.”

SHAREHOLDERS

Chief Seibeb said the Daures Green Hydrogen Village project is different because the community members are shareholders. “We started engagements in early 2022 and it resulted in what looks to be a very impactful initiative - which now needs to take form. The community fully supports the project since it will uplift the people in the Dâures constituency, the Erongo region, and Namibians in general by ensuring the creation of much-needed jobs, and we want our people to be involved. Namibia is full of opportunities and the ability to create sustainable jobs, and this project supports that.”

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Republikein 2024-11-23

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