In February, Indileni Munghono (25, left) and Theresa Ndala (26, right) from Namibia started working in two daycare centers in Bad Homburg. They are the first nursery teachers from Namibia to work in Hesse. In a year's time, they will receive their accreditation as “specialists in daycare facilities for children”. In Windhoek, the two studied “Early childhood education” up to Bachelor level and gained their first professional experience.
In Namibia, however, unlike in Germany, there are many well-trained educators and very few vacancies. The two young women therefore opted for our program and spent seven months learning German intensively every day at the Goethe-Institut in Windhoek. “It is a great enrichment for us to have educators from different countries in our teams,” says Eva Jethon, Head of Daycare Centers at the City of Bad Homburg. “We want diversity in our daycare centers,” she says. The city of Bad Homburg is also feeling the shortage of skilled workers in daycare centers. Since 2020, it has taken on a total of 24 young women from other countries; the city will continue this model. “They have a very good education and are highly motivated, as well as having empathy and great appreciation for the children and families.”
Indileni Munghono and Theresa Ndala themselves report that they like the fact that daycare centers in Germany are not regarded as preschools. “In Namibia, there is a curriculum for the entire nursery year that we have to adhere to. Here, nursery teachers are teachers for small children. But here, every child is free to decide what they want to play or do. The children's wishes are respected. The assumption here is that children learn best through play. I like that better,” says Theresa Ndala.
The two young women will now spend a year working as “specialists in recognition”. They will be accompanied by a practical instructor. At the end, they will receive a certificate in which their degree from their home country is recognized as equivalent to the German educator training.
Do they miss home? “My family does, but not Namibia,” says Theresa Ndala. “My father is proud of me and has supported me. He's happy that I can do my job here.” But there is one thing they both miss: grilled meat. In Namibia, there is a wide variety of meat from animals such as ostriches, antelopes, oryx, lambs and cattle. The two say: “German meat is not so tasty, but the sausage is good. And the many varieties of chocolate surprised us.”
(Photo: Helmut Fricke)