Usakos (Damara: grab the heel, Otjiherero
name: Okanduu) is a city on the banks of river Khan, 140 kilometres
north-east of
Swakopmund in the Erongo Region of Namibia. It is
located on the B2 (Trans-Kalahari Highway), the main road between the Walvis
Bay and Johannesburg. The town has 3,000 inhabitants and owns 58 square
kilometres of land. Usakos was scheduled to be downgraded to
"town" status before November 2010.
The settlement was founded in 1900 as a watering station for locomotives
when railway construction workers from Otavi Minen- und
Eisenbahngesellschaft (Otavi Mining and Railway Company) (OMEG) arrived here
on their way from Swakopmund to Tsumeb. Surrounded by mountains, Usakos is
quite picturesque. Certain spots around the town show the longest
uninterrupted horizon in the world. It is the closest town to the Spitzkoppe,
often referred to as the "Matterhorn of Namibia".
YouTube video of Tikoloshe Arts &
Crafts Omaruru video:
Development and
infrastructure
Usakos is the junction of the branch railways to Tsumeb and the Angolan
border, Outjo and Grootfontein from the line to Windhoek.
Politics
Local authority results,
2010
In the 2010 local authority election, a total of 1,029 votes were cast in
the city. SWAPO won with approximately 47% of the vote. Of the three other
parties seeking votes in the election, UDF received approximately 31% of the
vote, followed by RDP (17%) and COD (4%).
Notable residents
Usakos is the hometown of prominent politicians Alpheus !Naruseb and Tsudao
Gurirab. Michael Goreseb represented the town politically as well.
The first town in the east of the Namib Desert on the main B2 road from
Swakopmund, Usakos lies on the southern bank of
the Khan River, nestled in the last hills before the Namib, at the edge of a
vast expanse of gravel plains. The town originally developed around the
railway workshops which were built to service the narrow-gauge Otavi line,
completed in 1906. Unit 1960, the town prospered. Nowadays the town's main role is one of service centre to vehicles
plying their way to and from Swakopmund / Walvis Bay and Windhoek. As a reminder of the town's heyday, Locomotive
No. 40 stands in
front of the railway station, one of three Henschel steam trains built in
Germany for her colony's narrow-gauge railway.
Phone code: 064. Police: 10111.
Coordinates: 22°0'S 15°36'E
Country: Namibia
Region: Erongo Region
Constituency: Karibib Constituency
Established: 1900
Population (2010):
• Total: 3,000
Time zone: South African Standard Time (UTC+1)
north-east of
Swakopmund in the Erongo Region of Namibia. It is
located on the B2 (Trans-Kalahari Highway), the main road between the Walvis
Bay and Johannesburg. The town has 3,000 inhabitants and owns 58 square
kilometres of land. Usakos was scheduled to be downgraded to
"town" status before November 2010.
