Namibians can now opt to use a local social network, which has been developed by a Namibian for Namibians. Described as Namibia’s own social network, Namhook was developed by 22-year-old Gerson Mangundu, who is studying information technology in Cuba.

“I thought having our own social network could be a great thing, to be able to connect Namibians all over the world. Namhook is not just a social network, it’s more of a business platform too. Namhook will help solve many problems like offering free advertisements, artists can sell their songs on the network to their fans rather than roaming around the streets to sell their CDs. We are also launching safe online shopping where shops in Namibia will be able to sell their products to the rest of the nation via Namhook hence helping them expand their business,” explained Mangundu.

Responding to New Era questions, Mangundu said the mission is to get all Namibians connected to enjoy the free services offered by the site.

“It took me a year to finish the project with help from my professors and other developers. The main challenge was only time since I had to divide my time of developing the site with school,” explained Mangundu.

The IT student elaborated that he has invested countless hours in developing the website. “I had sleepless nights. I used to sleep less than four hours a day and the sleepless nights still continue since I have to market the website,” he said.

According to Mangundu, the site – which went live in January this year – currently has about 2 130 members. “Feedback from people has been great. I am not going to lie but I received 100 percent satisfactory feedback from people. It is really a great website with many useful features,” said Mangundu, adding that Namhook is “a network of networks” and has all the features found on giant networks and has its own unique features. “I am sure it’s the best social network. I would not have launched it if it was not the best,” said a confident Mangundu.