The Namibia Energy Institute (NEI) hosted the official handover ceremony of the SmartVille Living Lab at Inge’s Kindergarten at Mix Resettlement, just outside Windhoek, on 25 November 2025.
The event marked an important milestone in advancing community-based innovation, entrepreneurship education, and digital inclusion in peri-urban Namibia.
The Living Lab at Mix Resettlement is powered by a solar system and equipped with resources such as computing devices, internet connectivity, a freezer unit, hair clippers, and printing facilities. These tools support small enterprise activities and enhance digital literacy.
NUST’s Department of Governance and Management Sciences played a pivotal role by developing entrepreneurship learning content and training community members in business fundamentals and computer skills.
The SmartVille Project is funded by the European Union under the ERASMUS-EDU-2023-CBHE programme and focuses on developing Sustainable and Entrepreneurial Villages through Educational Living Labs in Namibia and Zambia.
The initiative is implemented by NEI and forms part of a consortium of eight partner universities—two from Namibia (NUST and UNAM), two from Zambia (University of Lusaka and Mulungushi University), and four European institutions. Together, the partners are introducing innovative teaching and learning models that promote teamwork, problem-solving, and entrepreneurship competencies among students and community members.
At its core, the SmartVille Project aims to reform entrepreneurship education within higher education institutions, while simultaneously supporting community development through access to both formal and informal learning tools delivered via technology-based platforms.
By establishing four Smart Village Living Labs across Namibia and Zambia, the initiative promotes gender equity, youth empowerment, and economic participation, especially for vulnerable groups. It also strengthens collaboration between universities and local start-ups—fostering enterprise growth, job creation, and improved employability.
SmartVille Project Coordinator, Mia Ekman, emphasised the importance of education. Addressing the youth of the Mix Resettlement, she said: “Education opens many doors, allowing you to be able to make a difference in shaping your future. If you don’t believe in yourselves no one else will.”
