You are currently viewing Geingob back after whirlwind trips to Angola, UK and US

Geingob back after whirlwind trips to Angola, UK and US


PRESIDENT Hage Geingob says Namibia is ready to welcome investors with open arms, following a whirlwind tour that saw him visit Angola, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US).

He mixed diplomacy and the search for investments during his visits.

Presidential spokesperson Alfredo Hengari yesterday released a press statement saying Geingob was the main speaker at the Namibia Investment Summit, organised by the Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB) in the US.

“During the summit, president Geingob emphasised the fact that Namibia was ready to welcome investments in strategic sectors of the economy, including renewable energy, green hydrogen and manufacturing, because the country was stable, peaceful and has a robust governance architecture in place,” the statement reads.

The president’s two-week-long journey started in Angola on 15 September for the inauguration of João Lourenço after he was re-elected, then headed to the late Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, after which he joined the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. In the UK, the president met with doctors interested in initiating a training programme for medical doctors in Namibia.

“In January 2023, a team of doctors in orthopaedics, maternity health, accident safety health, and eye health will visit Namibia to kick-start the training programme,” the statement reads.

Furthermore, during his speech at the UNGA, Geingob once again blamed Namibia’s status as an upper middle-income country for the country’s challenges in mobilising resources.

“The formula of taking our gross domestic product and dividing it by our small population, thus deriving a high per-capita income is, without a doubt, flawed and requires urgent consideration as it does not take into account the vast income disparities between wealthy whites and poor blacks,” the president said.

He said the country is progressing towards the second phase of its struggle for economic independence.

“… as the country had built a strong foundation for our governance architecture with an emphasis on strengthening processes, systems, and institutions in order to ensure effective governance for service delivery,” he said.

To an audience of global leaders, Geingob said the country’s current challenges is the consequence of 100 years of colonialism and apartheid.

Geingob was accompanied by first lady Monica Geingos, minister of fisheries and marine resources Derek Klazen, director general of the National Planning Commission Obeth Kandjoze, minister of education, arts and culture Anna Nghipondoka, minister of mines and energy Tom Alweendo, as well as deputy minister of international relations and cooperation Jennelly Matundu.

Klazen represented Geingob at meetings of the Oceans’ Panel.

Nghipondoka, along with executive director of education, arts and culture Sanet Steenkamp, and deputy Edda Bohn participated in the Transforming Education Summit, while Geingob missed the first few days of this session.

The president also missed the the summit of the United Nations secretary general on the Sustainable Development Goals Moment and was represented by Kandjoze.

The president skipped these sessions to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.





Source link