Besides the glittering façade of multi-million shopping complexes mushrooming up in the north, there is an untold story about a group of poor women who, unlike the shopping complex owners, are financing the constructions of humble structures to benefit villagers and other destitute communities.
They recently constructed a building that is housing a community mill in the Oshana region. Plans are already under way to turn the mill into a bakery to supply five school hostels in the surrounding villages.

Former northern regional manager for Standard Bank, Wosman Hamukonda, and Clemence Kashuupulwa, the governor of Oshana region after the bank financed the fencing of a mill and bakery at Amutanga village.

This is an initiative funded by a programme whose initial aim was to finance the construction of proper houses for shack dwellers, thus transforming shanty towns in urban areas into decent townships.
The success of the programme has been overwhelming to an extent that the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia (SDFN) has diversified into financing -and construction- of community projects besides housing. In constructing houses, the federation sourced building material at discounts, building contractors subsidised their service fees, and city and town councils subsidised ervens. And the private sector, having recognised the importance and viability of the programme, has also joined forces with the association.
In Ondangwa, the town council made “a commitment to avail them [members of the SDFN] with land”. “We have plenty of land, it a matter of servicing it with amenities,” said Ismael Namugongo, the town council's spokesperson.
Town councils and the private sector realise that the majority of people in the northern area are self employed.
Yet when combined into groups, such as the practice with the SDFN and the Namibia Housing Action Group (NHAG), the little savings translate into millions of dollars.
The savings from such groups is estimated between N$4 million and N$6 million for the period of 2004 and 2006, according to financial records of the NHAG and SDFN. By June 2004, the savings stood at N$3,263 million.
A single group consists of between 20 to 100 members most of whom are women. It was such a group, in Amutanga village, which understood the benefits of funding an infrastructure that would not only generate income for members but also benefit the vulnerable within the village.
Children in the village now have more time to focus on studying instead of pounding mahangu, while pensioners, orphans and vulnerable children have their mahangu pounded for free at the mill.