Rudolf Gaiseb
Independent Patriots for Change parliamentarian Rodney Cloete wants Namibia’s next African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) shipment to feature diversified product categories beyond raw commodities. This is to reflect economic diversification.
In his notice of questions on Wednesday to trade minister Selma Ashipala-Musavyi, Cloete questioned the specific, time-bound commitments the minister will provide to ensure subsequent exports include significant value-added manufactured goods, beyond primary commodities.
Cloete, on Wednesday, told Parliament that salt is classified by industry experts as a basic commodity with minimal value-addition potential, largely logistical in nature.
“This export thus starkly contrasts with our declared policy focus on ‘industrialisation, manufacturing and value addition’ through strategies such as Growth at Home,” he said.
Namibia signed the AfCFTA agreement on 2 July 2018 and ratified it on 1 February 2019, but only gazetted its tariff schedules on 20 December 2024.
“This highlights a disconnect between stated SME empowerment objectives and actual trade practices,” he noted.
He wants the ministry to commit to providing regular ministerial updates to Parliament, detailing volumes and values of all exports by product category.
This also includes the number of Namibian companies actively participating, specific progress on value addition projects, and comparative analyses of Namibia’s performance relative to other African countries.
Ashipala-Musavyi is expected to respond next week.
Cloete’s position is for the export of products such as processed agricultural goods, manufactured textiles, or beneficiated minerals under AfCFTA, thereby considering growth-at-home strategies and an emphasis on commodity-based industrialisation and value chain development.
Namibia’s first export under the agreement was 45 000 tonnes of salt destined for Nigeria, sent off on 30 June 2025, a seven-year journey from ratification to execution.