SWAKOPMUND – The new Insolvency Bill, for which consultations are currently underway, will encourage Namibians not to be scared to take risks when it comes to business opportunities and to make use of all available legal instruments to protect their livelihoods.
The Law Reform and Development Commission (LRDC) is currently in the process of formulating the Insolvency Bill to replace the outdated Insolvency Act of 1936.
The new Bill, if passed in Parliament, will have a more direct impact on the Namibian society unlike the outdated Act that is a challenge for the insolvency framework in Namibia.
Insolvency is a procedure available to a debtor to approach the courts for liquidation. It also allows debtors to organise their affairs and finances in such a way that they can still make repayments to creditors while holding onto their households.
It also allows debtors to make arrangements with creditors without filling or being declared bankrupt.
Consultant, Advocate Adolph Denk, who is also attending the workshop, explained that the current Insolvency Act does not make this provision and is trapping debtors into a cycle of debt.
“Hence we want to ensure that the Insolvency Bill we are currently consulting on will speak directly to the needs of ordinary Namibians, business entities and future business leaders,” he said.
“We also want to make sure that people are not trapped and stay in debt with the new Bill. At the same time, we are also putting systems in place to ensure that the process is not abused,” he said.
Minister of Justice Sacky Shangala, himself a former chairperson of the Law Reform and Development Commission, said that the aim is to refine the draft of the Insolvency Bill that was prepared by the committee to make sure it is appropriately attenuated to the Namibian environment and context.
He added that government also wants to ensure that the proposals for the law reform contained in the Insolvency Bill are feasible to implement in practice.
“At the same time our aim is also to raise the level of public awareness of the proposed law and to provide an opportunity for the public input that will advance an overall understanding of insolvency practice in Namibia.