26 Mar 2017

Namibia High Commissioner, Mr Mbapeua Muvangua says it is encouraging that after turning 27 years, his country is steadily making sound economic progress.
Speaking at Namibia’s independence celebration in Gaborone recently, Mr Muvangua said achievements had been made possible by government’s commitment to improve the lives of its citizens through many sound and well driven economic programmes.
“We have been reflecting, innovating, strategising and moving forward in line with our national strategic vision called Vision 2030, driven through our National Developments Plans 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 and assisted by the Harambee Prosperity Plan,” he said.
The Harambee Prosperity Plan was launched on April 5, 2016 by Dr Hage Geingob, President of the Republic of Namibia, based on five pillars which included effective governance and service delivery, economic advancement, social progression, infrastructure development and international relations and cooperation.
According to Mr Muvangua, the plan demonstrated commitment and prioritisation of developing a Namibia where all Namibians may prosper.   
In the meantime, he said Namibia’s economy had continued to grow at an average of five per cent in recent years, despite the global commodities downturn which had severely affected resource based countries.  
“Our macro-economic architecture is sound and characterised by decades of growth and stability. It is pertinent that we focus our attention on the gaps within our socio-economic architecture and the disparity in income inequality,” he said.
He further said the mission in Gaborone was ready and willing to assist investors with practical guidelines on setting up a business in Namibia.
Assistance is provided in the field of legal and regulatory requirements, processes and general information on Namibia to help investors and business owners.
He also noted that reaching Namibia from Botswana had been simplified since reintroduction of direct flight route Windhoek-Gaborone-Durban on October, 27 last year. Air Namibia now flies to Gaborone every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.
He said Namibia-Botswana bilateral relations had grown from strength to strength, saying good relations at the highest levels of leadership always remained a guiding torch for the development of neighbourly relations between the two countries.
“These good relations have come a long way by virtue of shared societal affinities, geographical proximity and political history,” he said.
Thus, he made assurance over continued cooperation with Botswana in other multilateral fora for the benefit of both nations and the world at large.
“The role of SADC, AU and the United Nations remains relevant and we will continue to call for its reform in line with our common position at the African Union,” he said.