Ovaherero Compile Protocol To Preserve Culture And Traditional Knowledge

19 Jun 2024

African peoples generally preserve their history and culture through oral tradition and transmission from generation to generation. The OvaHerero in north-west Namibia and south-west Angola have recently started to do this in writing: with a jointly compiled protocol.

They presented their so-called Biocultural Community Protocol (BCP) in a ceremony in Opuwo and Windhoek. More than 200 representatives of the Herero communities south and north of the Kunene border river travelled to the event in Opuwo.

The BCP contains information about the OvaHerero's colourful history, diverse culture with traditions and customs as well as knowledge about plants and animals. There are also provisions for access to their knowledge and natural resources.

What is special about the almost 80-page document is that the information was compiled by the communities themselves after four years of hard work and many exchanges. The international organisations Natural Justice and International Rivers helped with the work, as can be seen from their press release. They have also made the BCP available for download as a PDF document.

OvaHerero culture and traditional knowledge under threat

Due to their largely nature-orientated way of life, OvaHerero are susceptible to the negative consequences of climate change. Increasing external influences are leading to a change in lifestyles and expectations among younger people. As a result, their culture is facing new challenges. For example, English is increasingly threatening to replace their OtjiHerero language. This harbours the risk of traditional stories, traditions and indigenous knowledge being lost.

The OvaHerero in Kaokoland in north-west Namibia and in the regions of south-west Angola are a semi-nomadic pastoralist people. Referred to as OvaHimba by outsiders, their communities lived in lively exchange north and south of the life-giving Kunene River. At the beginning of the German colonial period 140 years ago, the river was declared the border that divides their communities today.

Sven-Eric Stender