Life beneath plastic
In the middle of Ekunde 6 in Okahandja, a settlement unlike any other is quietly expanding. Here, makeshift homes built almost entirely from plastic sheets and salvaged materials stand clustered together on dusty ground near a riverbed, a fragile community hanging on by little more than hope and survival instinct.
During a recent visit by Network Media Hub (NMH), the reality of life in this informal settlement unfolded in heartbreaking detail.
Outside one of the plastic structures stood 43-year-old Tania Kloefas, framed by a doorway patched together with plastic and wood. Nearby, her boyfriend sat in a camping chair sipping coffee while a radio played softly in the background. Around them, the yard was scattered with plastic bottles collected for resale and recycling.
Inside this environment, Kloefas’ two children a 15-year-old boy and his 10-year-old sister were unpacking food and other items they had collected from the local dumpsite for the day’s meals. “That is actually our daily food,” Kloefas told NMH, referring to the discarded goods her children retrieves from the dumpsite.
The comment, delivered with a laugh, masked the harshness of their daily reality. When asked about schooling, Kloefas explained that her son had dropped out. “I seriously do not know why he left, but he left because maybe he was tired,” she said, pausing deeply. Her daughter, however, is still attending school.
Kloefas shared that she herself never attended school and does not know how to spell her own name. She said her prospects of finding employment were further complicated after undergoing a surgery years ago, “I don’t even know what surgery it was,” she said. Living close to the river in Ekunde 6 has become another threat. When heavy rains arrive, water enters homes and washes away belongings. During the most recent rain, Kloefas said blankets and clothing were swept away. “The rain takes everything,” she said.
The family survives without a stable income and Kloefas said she does not receive social support grants for her children. “The children go to the dumpsite to look for our daily food because that is where we unfortunately live from,” she explained. NMH observed the young girl drinking expired medication reportedly collected from the dumpsite. Nearby were aerosol sprays and various discarded household items.
While some of the family’s remarks were delivered jokingly, the situation highlighted alarming health and safety concerns for children living in poverty. Kloefas said the Okahandja councilors officers had previously assisted her with eight corrugated iron sheets and five poles, but she says the materials were insufficient to build a proper shelter. She also expressed frustration with local authorities. “I used to get food assistance, but when I went back, my name was no longer on the list. They could not explain why,” she said.
“I am so tired of that councilor office, nonstop fights with no solution.” Nearby, 26-year-old Ivonne Ludik, heavily pregnant and mother to a fatherless five-year-old boy, echoed similar frustrations. Ludik said her son has no birth certificate after the original document was destroyed in a shack fire. Without money to replace it, she is unable to apply for a social grant. “The struggle is real. I am trying, but with no luck,” she said. She also criticised the councillor’s office. "Some days they help, but that help is of no use,” Ludik said.
NMH observed more than four homes constructed primarily from plastic materials in the area. Residents described constant fears of disaster. With a river close by, flooding remains a serious threat during heavy rains. Equally concerning is the ever-present risk of veld fires or shack fires, which could spread rapidly through the tightly packed plastic structures. A source also informed NMH that an elderly couple previously living nearby had relocated after allegedly being threatened by their own son, who reportedly told them he would burn them alive.
As the afternoon sun beat down on Ekunde 6, children continued with routines no child should know, tending fires, sorting waste. Kloefas boy carefully helped his mother cook food gathered earlier in the day, seemingly unfazed by the hardship surrounding him, while the sister played with items collected during the day. Behind the humour and occasional laughter lies a grim reality: poverty is forcing families to build homes from plastic in one of the most vulnerable and unsafe environments imaginable.
As informal settlements continue to expand across Namibia, Ekunde 6 is fast becoming a symbol of desperation, neglect and the critical need for assistance. Without proper housing, flood mitigation, fire prevention and stronger social support systems, residents fear their plastic homes and fragile livelihoods which could be washed away or reduced to ashes at any moment.
