Community service project amongst the Ju’hoan Bushmen in the eastern Tsumkwe region

The Bushmen are the oldest inhabitants of Africa. Today, only a few of them still live as the Bushmen of a thousand years ago. In Namibia there are nowadays only a few small groups of Bushmen with a semi-traditional way of living, e.g. the Ju’hoan in Tsumkwe, the Barakwena in Bagani and the Vasekelas in Magettiduin. More or less 2 400 Bushmen live in the vicinity of Tsumkwe, a small town in East Bushmanland, in the Northern parts of Namibia (north east of Grootfontein, near the border with Botswana). The Tsumkwe ministry area is 13 200 km and consists of the town Tsumkwe and 33 villages where Bushmen live in the veld. Tsumkwe has approximately 550 inhabitants, 350 of which are Bushmen.

Due to improved communication and transport services the Bushmen are increasingly exposed to the Western culture and way of living. The flocking in of other ethnic groups to the traditional Bushmanland, as well as continuing droughts make it impossible for the Bushmen to live from the veld as they did previously. The food in the veld and game become increasingly scarce. They even find it difficult to make traditional clothes because the hide of game is not readily available.

The Border war in the former SWA resulted in a new generation of young Bushmen in Tsumkwe who do not know how to hunt in the traditional way or even how to survive on veld food. Work is scarce and because most of them live in the feld, only a few of the Bushmen in the Tsumkwe area have a permanent job or income. Poverty and famine are constant problems which are only addressed by government in a very restricted way.

As a result there are quite a number of governmental and non-governmental projects going on in the area. The Dutch Reformed Church in Namibia and in the Free State are involved in the uplifting of the community by means of:

1. The maintaining of the cultural heritage of the Bushmen. The Bushmen are encouraged to produce and use the traditional items such as clothes, music instruments, hunting gear, ornaments etc. Most of them still live in traditional huts in the veld and really need those items for daily use in order to survive, but also to sell to tourists.

2. Providing in social needs. They regularly exchange surplus traditional items (or authentic Bushman curios) for food, clothes and blankets. To prevent them from begging and to foster a national pride almost nothing is given to them for free. (From time to time the government distributes food for free in order to provide in their need. This aid, will however, be stopped.)

3. Acquiring of life skills. Groups of Bushman women are being taught how to do needlework. A bakery provides not only bread, but also job opportunities. Bushmen were trained to work as bakers. Some of them work as shepherds or as farm hands).

4. Acquiring of agricultural skills. Ranching started under efficient leadership. The main aim is to provide meat at an affordable price. People are trained to plant mealies and other grain. Since the Bushmen in Tsumkwe traditionally are hunters, and not peasants, this project still has a long way to go.

5. Spiritual and emotional care for the Bushmen. The pastor visits the Bushmen in the veld monthly and tends to their spiritual needs. There is a congregation in Tsumkwe and services, prayer meetings and Sunday school meetings take place every week.

To accomplish these goals they need the following:

1. Food to the value of between R15 000-00 and R25 000-00 is being exchanged monthly for curios. The marketing and selling of these curios are crucial in order to pay the monthly food account. It is therefore important to market the curios and to find new markets (especially overseas). See “Authentic Bushman Curios”.

2. Financial support and the possible appointment of extra personnel in order to provide life and agricultural training.

3. Financial support for the pastor who takes care of the emotional and spiritual needs of the Bushmen in the Tsumkwe area.

4. In order to be able to effectively continue the ranching, the following are of the utmost importance:

a. Building of hygienic slaughter facilities. It should be a small building, with a cement floor, basin with cold water, good ventilation, a hoisting machine, a metal table on which to work with the meat and a deep freeze.

b. The buying of a mobile milk machine in order to milk hygienically and cleanly.

c. Money is needed to enable the community to buy the 40 ha which is used for the ranching project (when Tsumkwe will be declared a town). The camp has already been measured, it is situated outside the borders of the town and does not form part of the conservancy for the Bushmen.

The financial resources of the institutions who are at present involved with the uplifting of the community in the Tsumkwe area are limited. It is therefor important to get support from others to be able to achieve and develop the abovementioned goals. Anyone who wants to get involved with the community work at Tsumkwe, should feel free to contact Jeanet Conradie (+27-(0)51-4366521 or conradj@sci.uovs.ac.za) for more information.