Gochas


Gochas is a village in the Hardap Region of Namibia. It is located southeast of Mariental and southwest of Stampriet on the way to the Mata Mata border post to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. The town lies on the banks of the Auob River above sea level. In 1960, the population was reported as including 205 whites, 108 mixed-race, and 224 blacks. The area is at the center of a set of Kalahari Desert dune farms on which cattle and sheep graze.

History

The village has been the main settlement of the ǃKharakhoen, a subtribe of the Nama people, since 1889.
Gochas was a flashpoint in the colonial Herero Wars in German South West Africa. It was used as a military post and camel station under Imperial German rule. In January 1905 the Germans defeated the Nama chief Simon Kooper here. The final battle of the war, the Battle of Seatsub, was fought in Bechuanaland in March 1908. Capt. Friedrich von Erckert was killed in action, and a memorial was built in Gochas.

Politics

Gochas is governed by a village council, established in 1958, that has five seats.
The 2015 local authority election was won by the SWAPO party which gained three seats. One seat each was won by the Congress of Democrats and the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance.

Climate

Gochas receives an average of of rainfall per year. During the 2010s drought a low of was recorded.