There is a need to develop a policy aimed at enhancing an equitable and sustainable biotrade sector in Namibia.

The establishment of such a policy will link Namibia's biodiversity product innovations to a global market while supporting local community development.

These were sentiments shared by various speakers at the National Dialogue Policy on Investment in Biodiversity as a Catalyst for Sustainable Income Generation and Conservation held in Windhoek today.

Among the speakers, the manager of the Access and Benefit Sharing Project said investing in biodiversity trade can be a great contributor to poverty reduction for communities in rural areas.

Hence, Kauna Schroder stressed the need to invest in this sector financially to derive the full benefits from it.

The German Embassy's Head of Development Cooperation says the sector has the potential to create new value chains through innovations based on natural resources.

Ulrike Metzger further added that it will also create opportunities for knowledge transfer on indigenous products, jobs, rural empowerment and international trade opportunities for Namibia.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism's Environmental Commissioner, Timoteus Mufeti, vowed that the Ministry will create a conducive environment that will ensure there are fair and equitable mechanisms in place for communities to derive benefits from biodiversity.

The ministry, in partnership with the German government through GIZ, is jointly implementing the bioinnovation in Africa project (Country Package for Namibia).

The project is focused on fostering European-African cooperation for biodiversity-based innovations and products with equitable benefit sharing for biodiversity.