Etosha King Nehale officially opened

The long-awaited official opening of the Gondwana Collection’s Etosha King Nehale Lodge finally became a reality recently.

Held under the theme ‘a night with the king’, the opening of the lodge - situated in the King Nehale Conservancy just north of the Etosha National Park - was originally planned for the end of May 2020, but had to be postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The event was co-hosted by Gondwana and King Fillemon Shuumbwa Nangolo of the Ondonga Traditional Authority.

Guests included tourism minister Pohamba Shifeta, chairperson of the traditional authority John Walenga, senior councillors of the traditional authority and a host of other prominent personalities.

Chief Herman Ndilimani Iipumbu of the Uukwambi Traditional Authority, Chief Mathias Kaunashoto Walaula of the Ombadja Traditional Authority, representatives of other traditional authorities and the ever-popular ‘I Laugh Namibia’ comedians Neville Basson and Lazarus Jacobs were also in attendance.

Gondwana founder and brand and marketing director Manfred Goldbeck announced that the group celebrated the occasion by donating all the room fees for the weekend’s event to the Oompale Trust Fund.

The income generated will go towards the construction of ‘The Gondwana House’, which will be used as the king’s guest suite at the Onambango palace south of Ondangwa.



Fire-lighting ceremony

An early day awaited guests on Saturday, 10 December, for the ekulo lyeelo nokutemeno omulilo - or lighting-of-the-fire ceremony - which is performed as a welcome when moving into a new home.

Senior Ondonga traditional councillor Shifotoka Nambandja lit the fire in a boma using dry cow dung and four pieces of tamboti wood and then added a log of an Omusati tree (Mopane) at 05:00.

As is customary, guests then gathered outside to wait for sunrise as it is believed that if someone is up before sunrise, he or she will find something good and worthwhile before the latecomers arrive.

This was followed by the unveiling of a plaque by Nangolo and Shifeta to declare the lodge officially open.

Around mid-morning, several guests joined a guided game-viewing drive to Gondwana’s exclusive waterhole in Etosha.

Perched on the very edge of the waterhole, the hide offers expansive views. The arrival of a large herd of elephants was undoubtedly the highlight of the excursion.



Fundraiser

Comedians Basson and Jacobs had guests in stiches that evening, which was set aside as an Oompale fundraiser.

The fund was established a few weeks after Nangolo's inauguration in June 2019.

It is named after the centuries-old taxation system that requires Ondonga households to bring a portion of their new mahangu or sorghum harvests to the palace.

This enabled the king to provide food to vulnerable people, especially during droughts, and was used during ceremonies and public events.

Three accommodation vouchers donated by Gondwana were auctioned off for a total of N$33 000. Excitement was high when bidding opened for a Simmentaler stud bull - donated by Namibia’s first black stud breeder, Sidney Martin.

After some hectic bidding, the bull - valued at N$80 000 - was sold to well-known businessman Mannetjies Kambonde for a whopping N$100 000.

The funds raised by the auction will be used for the construction of the king’s quarters and a guesthouse for use by Gondwana

at the palace.

Shifeta lauded Gondwana’s initiative to establish a partnership agreement with the King Nehale Conservancy, saying it could be used as a case study for successful joint ventures in conservancies.

He pointed out that the group had paid a total of N$1.4 million to the conservancy to date and N$214 000 to the Ondonga Traditional Authority, while the ministry received N$500 000 in park entrance fees for visitors to Gondwana’s exclusive Etosha waterhole.