Community Location Map
📍 Location: Richtersveld & Namaqualand, Northern Cape, South Africa / Southern Namibia
Overview & Cultural Background
The Nama are a Khoekhoe pastoralist group inhabiting the hyper-arid rangelands of Namaqualand and the Richtersveld desert in South Africa and southern Namibia. Managing livestock in a landscape with less than 50mm of annual rainfall, the Nama reside in portable dome-shaped mat-huts (|haru om) woven from rushes that expand during rain and allow ventilation during scorching heat.
The Nama practice transhumant pastoralism within the UNESCO World Heritage Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape—the last territory where Khoekhoe transhumance survives. Herders possess profound botanical knowledge of succulents and desert plants, ensuring fragile arid ecosystems are never overgrazed.
Key facts
- Estimated Population: Approximately 300,000 people
- Primary Livestock Herded: Namaqua Afrikaner sheep, goats, and donkeys
- ️ Contemporary Challenges: Extreme aridification in the Namib desert, historical land dispossession, balancing communal pastoral rights with diamond mining concessions, and restricted access to historic water points.
Featured Films in the Festival Program
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Conservation and Traditional Survival ⏱ 22 min | 🌍 South Africa | 🎬 Humair Hayat