Open Society Initiative of Southern Africa (OSISA)

The Polytechnic of Namibia was established in 1994 by Act of Parliament as an autonomous tertiary institution, with academic operations commencing in 1996 in the key performance areas of tuition, applied research and service.

Driven by a vision to be a modern university, the Polytechnic has significantly strengthened its profile, status and reputation since its establishment.

Some of its successes include the diversification of qualifications, an average annual growth in student enrolment of 18%, the accreditation of qualifications by international bodies, the creation of a modern infrastructure, significant international funding, and a respectable profile of national and international partnerships.

Over the past year, the Polytechnic, through its academic staff in the Department of Public Management, has been engaged in ongoing discussions with OSISA and the Crime and Violence Prevention Initiative (CVPI) on how best it can complement the development of the crime and violence prevention agenda in Namibia.

Through these talks, a decision has been taken; that the Department of Public Management and the Centre for Cooperative Education in the Polytechnic will co-host an accredited certificate course in crime and violence prevention for government and civil society officials.

The Department of Public Management will be responsible for the development, administration and coordination of the course material, and its delivery, with the support of the Centre for Justice and Crime Prevention (CJCP), a South African NGO with extensive training experience in crime and violence prevention.

The Centre for Cooperative Education was established in 2010 to facilitate cooperation between the Polytechnic, private, public and civil society sectors to enhance meaningful learning for senior students.

The purpose of the centre is to integrate related academic preparation with practical work experience, giving the students better insight into their potential career paths. It will also contribute by establishing networks with officials in the public, private and civil society sectors, in order to facilitate the placement of students for experiential learning purposes.