Namibia and Russia are seeking to expand trade, investment and cooperation.

Officials from the two countries met in Windhoek for the 11th session of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation between Namibia and Russia.

Namibia says the meeting is a platform to review progress and identify new areas of cooperation.

Minister of International Relations and Trade Selma Ashipala-Musavyi says the government wants to increase business engagement and contact between people from the two countries.

She says Namibia has identified priority sectors for investment under the Sixth National Development Plan.

These include agriculture, youth empowerment, education and training, creative industries, health, land, housing and sanitation.

She also called on the Russian business community to explore opportunities in these sectors.

"The Namibian government has identified priority areas within the framework of the Sixth National Development Plan. and we invite the Russian business community to explore business opportunities in those priority areas."

Ashipala-Musavyi says discussions at the recent Namibia-Russia business forum identified possible projects, including the establishment of a fertiliser manufacturing plant to support farming projects across Namibia.

She says the project could support green scheme farming, reduce the cost of production and help increase output for farmers.

Russia says trade between the two countries has grown, but more opportunities remain.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev says bilateral trade has increased in recent years.

According to Trutnev, trade between Namibia and Russia reached $11.7 million in 2024, an increase of 82.8%.

He says the growth continued in 2025, with trade rising to $18.4 million.

"By the end of 2024 the trade turnover between Russia and Namibia grew and reached $11.7 million US dollars. But these figures do not reflect the full potential of cooperation between our countries." 

Trutnev says Russia is interested in expanding cooperation in mining and nuclear energy.

He says Russian state nuclear company Rosatom is ready to continue geological exploration and support projects in uranium mining.

He says the company also has experience in nuclear energy and medical technology and is ready to share this knowledge.

"Rosatom has experience in building nuclear power plants and developing technologies used around the world, and we are ready to share this experience and technology." 

Both countries say the meeting is also reviewing agreements discussed during the previous session of the commission and identifying new areas of cooperation.