Rani Company invests hugely in Okahao

Maria David
TRADERS at Okahao will no longer miss a business day during the rainy season after the Rani Group of Companies invested N$1 million in the construction of a state-of-the-art open market.
The open market which will be built in two phases aims at benefiting women and youth that do trading in the town.
In the first phase, a total of 86 stalls are expected to be constructed for N$600 000, while in phase two 70 stalls will be constructed for N$400 000.
Ali Dharani of the Rani Group said they do not charge any fees for the construction of the open market, but donate it to the council for the benefit of the community in which they operate.

Dharani made the remarks during the official groundbreaking ceremony at Okahao on Friday.
“This is your omatala. If you see a need to render your assistance during the construction process then do so and if you can’t do any labour work then offer prayers for the safety of the contractors,” he said.
He said that they decided to invest in the women and youth of the town that find themselves selling in the open during the rainy season resulting in their products going to waste, hence a well-developed open market will be the solution that they need.
“We need to protect our mothers; once a woman is protected then the whole family is well taken care of,” he said.
Dharani promised that once the opened market is in full operation, he will boost the first 86 vendors with starter packs of goods for selling.
Mayor Cornelia Iiyambula said the importance of an open market in Okahao cannot be overemphasized, hence it will always be the responsibility of the town council to ensure that their informal traders, particularly the street vendors, have a marketplace for their products.
“As a council, we are faced with various challenges to deliver these facilities for our people and the investment by Rani will go a long way to serve the people,” she said.
Iiyambula indicated that the company through their social corporate responsibility offered to donate an amount of N$50 000 for the next three years to benefit the community of Okahao.
She then called on local businesses to emulate the trend set by Rani Group of Companies and help grow their community.
The open market will be constructed by The 6000 Investment, a company owned by Mario Upite, and completion is set for 31 July 2022.