The Namibia Local Businesses Association, NALOBA, has urged for speedy enactment of the Investment Promotion and Facilitation Bill.

NALOBA says the bill remains critical to the survival of local businesses that have been struggling to stay afloat since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The very intention of the Investment Promotion and Facilitation Bill is to promote sustainable economic growth and diversify product manufacturing.

Trade Minister Lucia Iipumbu mentioned that the bill is expected to be promulgated during the current financial year.

The bill also provides for sector reservations for local investors.

NALOBA Vice President Peter Amadhila says it had provided input on the bill during stakeholder consultations.

"That bill is the most important because it will regulate how foreigners should conduct themselves when they come to Namibia. Now we have foreigners coming here selling vouchers, selling at the expense of Namibians. That bill will dictate that foreign investors must do manufacturing that is beyond our capacity. Foreigners coming here doing retail and calling foreign investors, aye, it's because there is anarchy. We are pleading with the President to see this bill enacted before the end of your term in office."

President Nangolo Mbumba says, "The issue of fair competition has been a challenge, maybe we were so generous from the beginning that we did not protect our businesses. It is never too late. The law you are talking about, we are busy with it, it has gone through Cabinet several times, I will drive that through so it is passed."

NALOBA further pleaded with the government, particularly the Ministry of Mines and Energy, to address the smuggling of fuel that is sold at varying prices.

It says fuel smuggling from Angola has led to many service stations closing down in the north.

Another call from NALOBA is for the government to look into the issue of people living near the mines getting exposed to diseases, citing an example of the B2 Gold Mine.

NALOBA President Erastus Shapumba says, "People who are close to B2 Gold mine are exposed to the dust to a point where they don't even see the sun as it is covered in dust because of the mining activities, and the same people do not receive any benefit from the mining activities, but they are engulfed by dust every day. I therefore want neighbours to have benefits or shares from the mine because it is likely that after years those people will suffer from diseases as a result of being exposed to the dust coming from mining activities, and by that time the mines have already closed and the owners have left the country."

The Minister of Mines and Energy, Tom Alweendo, says, "There has been the question of who owns the resources, we do own them except that we agree to share the value of those resources when people come to exploit them, and that is why we charge them rent on those resources, what we call royalties. We can argue to say the money from royalties is not high enough, so we should ask for a higher rent. In terms of ownership, there are differences. When people talk about ownership, they are talking about the companies. We have state ownership in some of these private companies, maybe not at the level where everybody thinks it should be, it is to continuously figure out how best we can have it without making it such that nobody invests."

A NALOBA delegation recently aired their concerns to the country's leadership at the State House.

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Photo Credits
Namibian Presidency

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Blanche Goreses