Swimming Lessons for Horizon Primary School
Currently, 52 students from Horizon Primary School are taking part in our swimming program. The third-grade children form the beginner groups and receive swimming lessons twice a week. The fourth-grade students are already training at a more advanced level and attend practice once a week.
The focus is not only on learning swimming techniques, but also on developing self-confidence, discipline, and teamwork skills. Many children enter the water with great insecurity at the beginning of the program. Step by step, they learn to overcome their fears, move safely in the water, and eventually swim independently.
The children practice basic skills such as breathing, diving, floating, gliding, jumping, and moving safely through the water. At the same time, they learn important water-safety rules and develop a better understanding of how to use water responsibly.
Our Sports Coordinator: Erenstine Gom-Khaises
The swimming program is led by our Sports Coordinator, Erenstine Gom-Khaises. She organizes the training sessions, supports the children during lessons, and coordinates the ongoing development of the program.
With great dedication, she helps the students overcome their fears, develop new skills, and build confidence in their own abilities. Through her training as a swimming instructor, she continuously expands her expertise and brings modern teaching methods and international standards into the program.
Cooperation with Wellenbrecher Swimming School
The swimming program at Horizon Primary School is made possible and funded through a close partnership with Wellenbrecher Swimming School in Cologne, Germany.
Sina and Simone, the founders of Wellenbrecher, have been committed to supporting children in Namibia for several years. Through their financial support, the costs of swimming lessons, pool access, transportation, equipment, and meals for the children are fully covered. Their commitment ensures that children from disadvantaged backgrounds have access to professional swimming instruction.
In addition, Sina and Simone bring more than 20 years of experience in swimming education. They support the ongoing development of the program through professional guidance, training workshops, and the education of local swimming instructors.
In 2026, they traveled to Namibia in person to conduct an intensive instructor training workshop together with our team. Their goal is to establish a sustainable swimming program that will provide children with essential skills for their safety, health, and personal development for many years to come.
More Than Just Swimming
The swimming program teaches far more than just a sporting skill. It helps children learn to embrace challenges, achieve their goals step by step, and believe in themselves. Many of them have already made remarkable progress and are now far more confident and capable in the water than they were at the beginning of the program.
Beyond developing swimming skills, the program also fosters independence, responsibility, discipline, and social skills. The children learn to support one another, overcome challenges together, and celebrate each other’s achievements.
For many families, this is the very first opportunity for their children to receive professional swimming instruction. As a result, the program not only opens up new recreational opportunities but also equips children with a life-saving skill, one that is especially important in a coastal town like Swakopmund.
Looking Ahead
Our goal is to continuously expand and improve the swimming program, giving even more children access to high-quality swimming education. By training local instructors, expanding our range of lessons, and strengthening our long-term partnership with Wellenbrecher Swimming School, we are building sustainable structures that extend far beyond individual swimming sessions.
Every child who learns to swim gains greater safety, independence, and new opportunities for the future.
Because swimming is more than just a sport. Swimming saves lives.
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