1. Does Namibia have a drinking crisis
By: Vita Angula
On any given day of the month more specially the weekends a drive through Katutura a
Windhoek township populated by the black working class usually making up the lowest income
strata. One is certain to notice the booming liqour trade with retail taking place in shebeens
(taverns) that are set up in the residential yards as a form business to supplement the income of
the property owner.
The right to engage in any income generating business as long as it is within the parameters of
the law is enshrined in Chapter 1 of the Namibian Constitution Article 21 (j) which states ‘ All
persons shall have the right to practice any progression, or carry any occupation, trade of
business’.
The question I would like to pose is what happens when the existing law is no longer of benefit
to those it should protect. The liquor Act no.6 of 1998 subsection 5(b) states that the Minister
may prescribe conditions applicable to shebeens including the hours during which they may
operate.
The consumption of liquor in Namibia more especially in the low income areas is regarded as a
favourite past-time, source of entertainment and means of socialization. What further fuels the
consumption of liquor is its widespread availability and affordability to the common man.
According to the American Journal of Science, Alchohol is a drug which acts as both a stimulant
and depressant to the central nervous system and long term usage of this drug can lead to
dependence of those consuming the substance which in most cases leads to addiction which is a
chronic disease that if not treated will usually result in the death of the addict.
Now one may argue that addiction is not a disease and people who find themselves addicted to
alchohol is as a result of a moral flaw or lack of willingness to exercise self-restraint and control.
However modern science in its definition of alcoholism has proved that the way alchohol affects
the brain like any other drug is detrimental and an alchoholic would usually need medical help in
the treatment of the disease before it reaches a point where it cannot be treated anymore resulting
in the subsequent death of the addict from the alchohol itself or an alchohol related disease such
as kidney failure, liver cirrhosis or accidents as a direct result of alchohol use.
As a nation we must ask ourselves if the economic aggregate gained in the trade of liquor
justifies the existing laws that make alchohol so readily available even at times, ‘from10h00am
to 24h00’ on everyday of the week except for Sunday according to the liquor act when people
are supposed to be productive.
If alchohol outlets are allowed to engage in business as of 10 o’clock in the morning till 2o’clock
after midnight on a weekday what does the nation loose in terms of productivity of its citizens
when they are sitting and drinking instead of engaging in meaningful employment as statistics
would suggest that most people who abuse alchohol in this country are the youth.

2. It would be interesting to note the findings if the Namibia Statistics Agency with participation
from relevant stakeholders such as the Ministry of health, private health practitioners, the police
and the community in general would undertake a study on the effects of alchohol on the
Namibian nation.
In the absence of such statistics I would assume from a layman’s perspective that alchohol is one
of the major contributing factors to crimes such as rape, robbery, car accidents, theft, murder and
Gender Based Violence as alchohol has been established to be an enabler for criminals to
commit crimes as it diminishes a person’s capacity for rational thinking and decision making.
The social aspect of the dangers of alchohol is an even more cause of concern as it is
documented and widely accepted that alchohol destroys the most important fundamental building
block of society which is the institution of family.
Court records have it that alchohol abuse is often cited as a reason for the dissolution of a
marriage. This goes to show that alchohol has no regard for social standing, race, ethnicity,
income, gender, whether you are employed or unemployed. The dangers of alchohol are the
same and can affect anybody and does not move along the lines of arbitrary constructs that we as
a society label ourselves in an effort to differentiate ourselves from one another.
Personally I deem it very suspicious that alchohol outlets (shebeens) are only permitted in the
lower income areas which are mostly populated by black people whereas in the up-market
(traditionally white) areas the ratio of shebeens to people is 0:Many.
Will it be farfetched to assume that this is a strategy to keep the poor in the grips of their poverty,
pacify them with alchohol by fuelling them with drunkenness and binding them to their addiction
thereby stifling their growth and designing a future for them where they only think to do piece-
work to afford them their next drink.
What is further saddening is that alchohol doesn’t only affect the user but these users have
children who are dependent on them for love, guidance and upbringing. Now what happens to
the child if Daddy is always drunk?
To delve deeper if one were to undertake a study, what would the findings be of academic
performance of Gr.10 and Gr. 12 learners who live in neighborhoods’ where there is a
flourishing liquor trade compared to learners from areas where the liquor trade in the form of
shebeens doesn’t exist and can this data be correlated to prove that the widespread availability of
alchohol is a contributing factor to the high failure rate amongst Gr.10 and Gr. 12 learners in
Namibia.
This piece I agree has more questions than answers but I do believe that Namibia is experiencing
a crises with regards to the consumption of alchohol in the country and it is no longer enogh to
trust that society should self-regulate to bring about a decrease in the consumption of this
harmful drug but it has become evident that government has a moral obligation to enact laws
curbing the widespread availability of alchohol and the hours it may be consumed.
The curbing of alchohol abuse in Namibia is most likely to lead to positive impact on the society
as a whole especially in regards to reduced crime, a safer and healthier society and a stronger and

3. more empowered family unit which is the fundamental building block of any society, community
and nation at large.