ST PETERSBURG – Namibia’s trade relations with Russia suffered a negative blow in 2022, mainly due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. However, Namibia’s trade minister now believes this depressed state of affairs can be reversed to once again enhance the trade relations.
Total trade between Namibia and Russia experienced a downward trend since 2021 and stood at a meagre N$363.4 million during 2022, representing a reduction of about 41% in comparison to the N$610.9 million recorded during 2021. Namibia is recorded to be a net importer of Russian goods, recording a trade deficit of N$268.1 million in 2022. Imports from Russia during 2022 stood at N$315.8 million. Speaking at breakaway sessions at the just- ended second Russia-Africa summit here, Namibia’s trade minister Lucia Iipumbu said the decline in trade between the countries should now be seen as a stepping stone to build on better collaborations and increase trade.
“Trade has declined significantly, especially in 2022, and the countries share a lot of history. Thus, it remains imperative to focus on sectors of comparative advantage and increase the trade,” she noted.
The top 10 products imported by Namibia from Russia during 2022 were dominated by fertilisers, which accounted for 80.5% of all imports, followed by printed books, newspapers, pictures and other products which contributed 6.9%, as well as fish and crustaceans contributing 4.1% to the total imports value.
Agreement
At the Russian summit which ended on Friday, Iipumbu and her Russian counterpart, deputy minister of trade and industry Alexey Gruzdev, signed an agreement to consolidate relationships between the two countries in terms of trade and investments.
The agreement, seen by New Era, acknowledges the substantial potential for developing and increasing mutual cooperation. It emphasised a trade relationship based on principles of equality and mutual benefit.
Moreover, Namibia and Russia intend to also focus cooperation in the areas of aviation, ship building, metallurgy, chemical industries, transport and special machinery as well as light industries.
“The signing should be a symbolic indication of our intention to continue the cooperation between our two governments. We are looking forward to ensuring that what we signed translates into actualities of what we are going to do in the future,” said Iipumbu.
She added that Namibia is ready to learn from Russia as the country is technologically advanced, and has a cutting-edge agricultural sector.