Keetmanshoop clean-up campaign drive | nbc

The Keetmanshoop Municipality has initiated a two-day clean-up campaign at Extension 7 Area.

The cleanup campaign is part of World Cleanup Day, when communities across the globe stand up against litter and clean up waste annually on September 16.

Members of the Namibian Defence Force as well as the public took part in the cleanup exercise.

An accountant at Keetmanshoop Municipality, Sherina Witbooi, says, “The municipality chose the 15th of September because we wanted to do a two-day cleanup campaign where we start on the 15th with cleaning a specific area, which is Extension 7, because it is close to our highway and we want to clean because our tourists and by-passers can see the area from there. The second day will be the 16th, which is Saturday, and will be cleaning around your house and cleaning up around your neighbourhood.”

The Health Inspector of Keetmanshoop Municipality, Rhu-dwan Benade, says, “This is a very necessary exercise, not a once-off thing; it is actually continuous, especially looking at the areas which we are covering, and these are usually low-cost housing areas, areas where people are really, we can say, suffering, so to help clean the area clean, to prevent certain diseases caused by waste, that’s the main reason we do this.”

Thusnelda Garuses, a resident of Keetmanshoop, says, “The reason why it is important to clean our town is hygiene; if you are in a dirty place, there is no hygiene, so you must know, you must stay in a clean area, and also the kids must know they clean the area where they are. That’s the first reason; the second one is that this is an entrance from South Africa where people are passing, so if you think about the tourists, they won’t stop if they see the place is dirty.”

“The reason why I took it important to join this cleaning up campaign here today is that, first of all, the environment needs cleaning and needs to stay healthy because we, as human beings,  depend mostly on the environment, so if the environment is littered by us human beings, there will be a lot of health hazards,” says Devian Kock, a resident of Keetmanshoop.