Oasa Taradi Trust

Johanna Shilongo produces all the clothing sold at her stall. The distinctive striped material used for the traditional dresses worn by Namibia’s Owambo women, represent the three different tribes – the Kwanyama, Ndonga and Ngandjera. Traditional the pink colour was obtained by grinding stone, and the fabric is known as Ondelela. Johanna also buys traditional Owambo baskets and wooden utensils and animals from the north of Namibia. Anyone desiring to have a taste of Owambo customs and tradition in their homes, must visit Ondjaba stall.

The name ‘Limbandungila’ means ‘walk slowly’ in Oshiwambo, an indigenous language of northern Namibia and owner, Ottilie Nghiitwikwa, is a connoisseur of hand-carved wooden crafts from north and north-eastern Namibia. Limbandungila was established in 1997 and stocks beautifully hand-carved wooden masks, paintings in relief, ceremonial masks and wildlife figurines, including traditional Namibian items such as bowls, cups and woven harvest baskets, predominantly from cultural groups in northern Namibia, selected with great care for her customers by Nghiitwikwa. Her enterprise and initiative supports several rural producers and craftsmen, necessitating Ottilie Nghiitwikwa travel regularly to northern Namibia, scouting for new hand-carved wooden items. Her winning selections and choices of wooden craft has made Limbandungila an enduring supplier of quality products, known for its traditional, authentic wooden artefacts of Namibian origin.

Emage Workshop has been crafting for over ten years and is highly equipped with the skills-development and discipline required to mesh the open-ended, unstructured artistic process on the one hand, with the goal-orientated, structured process of craft-making on the other. Emage Workshop takes conventional, acceptable forms of products such as books, dinner plates, cups, canvas clocks and beautifully blends these with hand-craft techniques using designs which shave the border with genuine fine art, solely, albeit subtle and understated. Recycled material, wood, sand, stones, shells and feather add the unique touches of truly wild and natural Namibia to the products. Tanya Schemmer, the founder of Emage Workshop draws her inspiration from nature and aims to present visitors to the Namibia Craft Centre stall with portable products encapsulating the haunting beauty of Namibian landscapes and the ephemeral essence of wildlife.