By Petronella Sibeene WINDHOEK – President Hifikepunye Pohamba is expected to take a two-week long trip to the Oshikoto and Omusati regions, from Friday, May 18 to June 03 this year. During this period, the President will hold talks with traditional leaders and the Swapo party leadership in the two regions. He is further scheduled to inaugurate the Ruacana constituency office, the Ruacana village council office, the office of the directorate of rural water supply, and the Ongwediva Medi-Park hospital. The president will also visit the Etunda irrigation scheme. Pohamba will be accompanied by senior government officials and some staff members from the office of the president. Offshore Development Company (ODC) said yesterday in a statement that Pohamba would officially inaugurate the newly developed multi-purpose Business Park at Ongwediva on May 23. The business park, situated opposite the Ongwediva Trade Fair Complex, was constructed at a cost of N$24 million. The business park is a project of the Ministry of Trade and Industry and was implemented and managed by the ODC. The Ministry of Trade and Industry has since the inception of its Sites and Premises Development Programme constructed a total of 34 modular small and medium enterprise (SME) business units and all-purpose industrial parks of which the Ongwedia Business Park is one. One of the main constraints to the successful development and growth of the SME sector in Namibia is the lack of affordable business premises. “In keeping with its mandate of promoting the entrepreneurial development and growth of the SME sector, the Ministry of Trade and Industry developed and adopted a Policy and Programme on Small Business Development in 1997,” the statement read. One of the main components of this Policy and Programme is the Sites and Premises Development Programme, which has been designed specifically to address the lack of affordable business premises. The programme involves the development of modular premises and industrial parks, which provide affordable spaces for trading, office and industrial activities.