Introduction
Historical evidence indicates that the San people are the earliest inhabitants of Namibia are believed to be the Khoisan speakers, a large group of hunters/gatherers who settled and led a nomadic life on the edges of the Kalahari and Namib deserts some thousands of years ago.
Due to the encroachment of the European settlers with their farming economies, the san people were dispossessed of their land and their traditional way of life has been severely destabilised. Consequently, they have been marginalised and started living in some of the most inhospitable terrains in the country, mainly surviving by hunting wild game and gathering roots and wild berries.
The San peoples are made up of seven main traditional groupings, namely the Hai//om, Ju/’hoansi, Kung, Khwe, !Naro, Barakwena and !Xu.
To curb the situation, the Namibia Cabinet directed the establishment of a focused and dedicated socio-economic San Development Programme under the Office of the Prime Minister in 2005. The main objective is to integrate marginalised communities into the mainstream of our economy and improve their livelihood.
Cabinet also approved an Ad Hoc Cabinet Committee and a Technical Committee on San Development Programme consisting of government line ministries....Read More
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