Walvis Bay official awarded National Environmental Award

2010/09/10

David Uushona, Manager of the Solid Waste and Environment Department of the Walvis Bay Municipality in Namibia, was honoured with a Coastodian Award at the Namibian Coast Conservation and Management (NACOMA) Gala dinner on 30 July 2010 in Swakopmund, Namibia.

The NACOMA project, under the auspices of the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism and funded by the Global Environmental Fund (GEF), was established in March 2006. It is assigned to pave the way for an Integrated Coastal Zone Management System for Namibia’s coast through awareness and education campaigns.

The Gala Dinner took place during the NACOMA Coastodian Coastal Biodiversity weekend (30 -31 July2010), celebrating the conservation and sustainable use of Namibia’s coastal biodiversity. The weekend aimed to increase awareness and integrate biodiversity conservation into key political and social processes.
David Uushona was one of eight people in Namibia to receive this honourable award in recognition of their hard work and dedication to environmental conservation issues.

On receiving the award, Ignatius Kauvee, NACOMA Senior Technical Advisor, described David Uushona as: “A local champion of environmental management at the local authority level and now one of the first to consider climate change adaptation and mitigation at local authority level.” Kauvee said that Uushona worked enthusiastically in involving communities in environmental projects in the Walvis Bay townlands and that he has succeeded in linking Walvis Bay with other leading cities in over 60 countries in their efforts to improve biodiversity conservation.”

David Uushona’s dedication has helped to elevate the Municipality of Walvis Bay as a forerunner of Namibian environmental issues. Solutions to environmental challenges are not attainable without the contribution of local authorities to national strategies. David’s work is testimony to the coastal zone management at its best.

Walvis Bay is an active member of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability as one of the pioneering cities in the ICLEI Local Action for Biodiversity (LAB) Programme, as well as one of five cities participating in the ICLEI Africa Climate Change Adaptation project.