Windhoek
In response to President Hage Geingob’s declaration of war against poverty, the Embassy of Finland in Namibia – which spends at least N$46 million on various developmental projects in the country annually – will early next year partner with the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare.
Speaking to New Era on Wednesday, the Ambassador of Finland to Namibia, Anne Saloranta, who was responding to a question on how the embassy would channel its resources towards this war against poverty, said a targeted capacity-building project aimed at strengthening the social protection system would be launched in partnership with the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare.
She added that the overall objective of Finland’s development cooperation globally is to eradicate poverty.
“Here in Namibia, the Embassy of Finland through the Fund for Local Co-operation has been supporting Namibian civil society and non-governmental organisations for the past 15 years,” said the Ambassador of Finland to Namibia.
She added that the priority sectors for funding include human rights, an inclusive green economy contributing to employment creation and preservation of culture and cultural heritage.
“At any given time we are funding around 20 NGOs on a project basis. Just this week I signed new funding agreements with three organisations for two-year projects contributing to poverty eradication,” said Saloranta.
Furthermore, Saloranta who is serving her fifth and last term as Ambassador of Finland to Namibia, commended Namibia for the developmental progress it has made for the past 25 years.
“I have had the privilege to follow Namibia’s first years of independence as a UNICEF programme officer in the mid-1990s. Namibia has developed rapidly since then,” she stated.
However, many challenges remain to be addressed, added Saloranta.
“And I am proud of my country’s commitment to support and assist Namibia to overcome them. In addition to our long-standing partnership in development, the Embassy of Finland is at present increasingly focusing on strengthening and enhancing trade and investment relations between our countries,” she said.
She said that the opening of the Namibian Embassy in Finland in March this year has given new impetus for the advancement of economic and trade relations, adding that there is an increasing private sector interest in Finland to partner with Namibia.
“I am proud of the accomplishments so far and look forward to seeing them grow further in strength and in volume,” said Saloranta.
Her counterpart, Bonny Haufiku, the Namibian founding Ambassador to Finland said trade engagements between Namibia and Finland have grown over the years.
Business people in Finland are interested in the Namibian market, he noted, explaining that Namibia is a favourable ground for foreign investments because of its political and economically stable environment.
A Namibian delegation will be travelling to Finland next week, Haufiku added. “There are opportunities on both sides. They (Europeans) have realised that Africa still has many untapped resources.”