Germany supports Alte Feste renovation in Windhoek with N$ 4.2 million in 2025/2026

Original text of the German Embassy’s media release no. 19/2025 of 28 November 2025:

“The German Embassy Windhoek is pleased to announce that Germany has officially commenced the financial support for the extensive repair and rehabilitation work on the Alte Feste building in Windhoek, which is led by the Joint Initiative of the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture and Namibia Art, Craft and Design (Craft Centre).

In 2025 – 2026, Namibia Art, Craft and Design Centre is receiving N$ 4.2 million (210 000 EURO) through the Federal Foreign Office’s Cultural Preservation Programme.

The funding, now underway, marks the beginning of a new implementation phase of the project with a focus on the renovation of the West and North Wings of the historic building as well as the courtyard area.

The Joint Initiative aims to repair and repurpose the building, which will later serve as a new location for the Namibia Craft Centre and the future National Genocide Museum. Other contributors include the FirstRand Foundation and the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture.

Mr Florian Seitz, Minister Counsellor and Deputy Head of Mission of the German Embassy, said:
“We are delighted to see the start of this new phase of work on the Alte Feste. The renovations of the building can facilitate the discussion about Germany’s historic legacy in Namibia among future generations. We applaud our Namibian and international partners for their initiative to turn the Alte Feste into a vibrant place with multiple purposes, including of cultural exchange and remembrance, and decided to support it with over N$ 4 Million.”

Constructed in 1890 under German colonial rule, the Alte Feste is Windhoek’s oldest historical building. After World War I, it became the headquarters of South African Union troops, later serving as a hostel for the Windhoek High School until 1935.

Following Namibia’s independence in 1990, it housed the National Museum until its closure to the public in 2014. By upgrading and repurposing the Alte Feste into a National Genocide Museum and Arts, Crafts and Heritage Centre of Excellence, the Joint Initiative by the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture and Namibia Art, Craft and Design (Craft Centre) seeks to transform this historic building into a vibrant and accessible space that holds social, cultural, and economic relevance for all communities in contemporary Namibia.

[Background]

Since 1981, Germany has supported the preservation of cultural heritage in developing countries and of German cultural heritage abroad through the Cultural Preservation Programme of the Federal Foreign Office. Namibia has so far received approximately 1.5 million Euros under this programme since 1985.”

• Media release “Germany supports Alte Feste renovation in Windhoek with N$ 4.2 million in 2025/2026” of 28 November 2025 by the German Embassy in Namibia (as PDF). See also the post on the German Embassy’s Facebook page (last checked in November 2025).

• See also media release “Germany supports renovation of the Alte Feste building in Windhoek” of 11 February 2025 by the German Embassy in Namibia in the ‘Primary Sources’ section of this website.

• See also the report “Historic Alte Feste building to undergo major facelift” by the Namibian (last checked in November 2025).