Otjiwarongo

Otjiwarongo (Herero for "beautiful place")[4] is a city[5] of 49,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia.

Otjiwarongo is located on the B1 road and its links between Windhoek, the Golden Triangle of Otavi, Tsumeb and Grootfontein, and Etosha National Park.

It is one of Namibia's fast-growing towns, with a neat and peaceful quality environment and many excellent facilities, including supermarkets, banks, lodges, and hotels.

A narrow-gauge railway was built from Swakopmund on the coast, to the Otavi copper mine which helped Otjiwarongo become a prosperous agricultural centre.

48 km (30 mi) to the north there is the Okorusu fluorspar mine, a well-known source of fluorite specimens for mineral collectors.

Also about 80 km from Otjiwarongo is Okonjima, the home of the Africat Foundation, a cheetah and leopard rehabilitation centre.

[9] Built 15 km outside of town, the Omatjenne Dam provides artificial recharge of local groundwater.

Otjiwarongo railway station is situated downtown, connecting Otavi and the junction at Kranzberg, and branching off to Outjo.

In front of the railway station stands the historic Locomotive No 41, originally brought from Germany to haul ore between Tsumeb and the port at Swakopmund.

All schools final exams for grade 10 and 12 are regulated by the Ministry of Education, Arts & Culture.

There are a number of institution for higher education in the town, as well as the MTI and COSDEC vocational training centres and a convent.

The largest, Paresis Park also known as "The Show Ground", is located in the upper suburb of the town.

The park is also used to host sport tournaments and business events such as the Otjiwarongo Trade Show.

The Central Business District of Otjiwarongo
Pink fluorite specimen from the Okorusu Mine near Otjiwarongo. Size: 6.4 x 6.0 x 1.1 cm.
German Class Hd Locomotive no. 41 plinthed at Otjiwarongo railway station
Aerial view of Otjiwarongo