Former Gov. Jim Florio and Rutgers faculty hosted a delegation of Namibian executives to identify mutual research solutions in energy, infrastructure, agriculture and finance.
John McLaughlin of the McLaughlin Global Network facilitated the Sept. 19 visit with the Rutgers’ Centers for Global Advancement and International Affairs and the Rutgers Business School.
Florio said that exchanges had with business leaders abroad were “about New Jersey maximizing economic opportunities here and overseas.”
“It is also in the national interest to develop collaborations with people around the world,” he said. “Research universities are extremely valuable conduits to these international opportunities. Rutgers excels in a number of areas. For example, the Rutgers School of Biological and Environmental Sciences has wonderful research facilities to coordinate with people who have agricultural concerns overseas.”
The delegates, who also will meet with business and political leaders in New Jersey throughout the week, discussed ways to progress viable economic growth in Namibia. Foibe Namene, the CEO of the Electricity Control Board, Namibia’s energy regulator, said that her institution’s goals were to “encourage investors” and position Namibia “as a hub of energy efficiency” in the southern Africa region.
“New Jersey is known for energy management and energy efficiency,” she said. “There are a number of challenges, including the supply from local power generation. Currently, we import about 30 percent of our power. We’re interested in solar energy to help our citizens save on their bills.”
Namibia has a multiparty democracy and a stable economy. Florio noted several similarities between Namibia and New Jersey, including the size of their respective coastlines.
“We both have long coastlines,” he said. “We’re researching offshore wind energy — there’s a lot of knowledge we can share.”
Kevin Lyons, a faculty member in the Rutgers Business School, presented a supply chain model designed to mitigate risk and help direct cost-efficient operations.
“I found the model very interesting — how do we fix the problem with technology?” Namene said. “How do we ensure that the money spent is spent properly instead of exporting capital out?”
Bisey Uirab, the CEO of the Namibian Port Authority, said that he is interested in understanding more about port operations in New Jersey’s complex infrastructure network to expand import and export capacity in Namibia.
“We have a very efficient port that is the closest to southern African businesses, and we want U.S. businesses to start importing and exporting into Namibia,” Uirab said.
“We are a gateway to the southern African region,” Namene added. “We are ready for business. We may be two million people, but we have many more people in the region that can be served.”
The group also discussed ways to advance pharmaceuticals, infrastructure and food processing using New Jersey’s academic and industrial assets. Namene said that the “take home will be getting people in the energy industry to take from this experience and the training that Rutgers can offer.”
Rutgers has a long history of research collaboration and exchange with African colleagues and is home to a large number of faculties whose research and teaching focus on Africa. In 2014, the university welcomed former Tanzanian president Jakaya Kikwete to sign the first academic agreement within the country and has served as host to young African leaders as part of President Obama’s Mandela Washington Fellowship program for the past three years.