By Mbatjiua Ngavirue WINDHOEK Trade and investment are likely to be high on the agenda when Chinese President Hu Jintao arrives in Namibia for a two-day State visit today. With this in mind, the Ministry of Trade and Industry recently announced a list of various products that Namibian producers can export to China. The ministry has also identified a list of approved Namibian sectors that it wants to encourage businesspeople from China to invest in. In an interview this week, Permanent Secretary of Trade and Industry, Andrew Ndishishi, explained that for some time the ministry has been looking for ways to boost economic growth through trade. Namibia needs to source raw materials such as petroleum, wheat, maize, sugar, steel and cement as well as other industrial inputs. At the same time though, Namibia is looking for market access for its products, especially to a country such as China. The government has pointed out to Chinese businesspeople that investing in Namibia could hold several important advantages for them. Namibia has special relationships and agreements with several countries in the region that could facilitate access for Chinese companies into those countries. Similarly, they will benefit from the highly developed infrastructure in Namibia, which makes doing business in the country relatively hassle free. The governments of China and Namibia signed two agreements more than a year ago, which are only now starting to bear fruit. The two agreements are the Trade and Economic Development Agreement and the Reciprocal Protection of Investments Agreement. Based on those two agreements they established a Joint Trade and Economic Development Committee co-chaired by the two ministers of trade of China and Namibia. The annex to one of the two trade agreements includes a list of items the Ministry of Trade and Industry wants to encourage Namibian businesspersons to export to China. The list includes 12 items, which are: – Meat and meat products (beef, mutton, goat, game) – Leather and leather products (bovine, small stock, game) – Processed hides and skin – Dairy and dairy products (UHT milk, cheese, other) – Beer and beverage – Processed and semi-precious stones – Processed marbles, granite and other dimension stone – Automotive parts and spares – Grapes – Agro-processed goods – Natural oils – Fish and fish products According to Ndishishi, the ministry wants Namibian businesspeople to seriously look at these product lines, and increase their production to meet the demand from China. There is another annex to the two agreements where government lists areas where it wants to see specific foreign direct investment (FDI) by Chinese companies. Ndishishi pointed out that most Chinese small businesspersons that have come to Namibia to set up corner shops did not come with the blessing of the government. Most engage in businesses that do not require high levels of skills or technology that Namibians could carry out equally well. The list of FDI sectors includes investment sectors approved by the government, and only Chinese businesspeople that invest in these sectors will qualify for special privileges under the Foreign Investment Act and EPZ Act.