Dr Alfredo Hengari
The basic assumption is that any journalist or analyst, the novice and the seasoned would understand the basics of effective governance, foreign policy and the prosperity nations derive from diplomacy.
Unfortunately, certain Namibian journalists, and worse editors are an exception to the rule and provide unreflective, unhelpful and downright trivial commentary about the external diplomatic missions of the head of State. They have constructed a problem out of the participation of Namibia and the President in international affairs. Hopeless editorials and shoddy articles are dedicated to external missions whenever the President is outside the borders of Namibia.
Curiously, these journalists and analysts are not surprised to see that when the President is outside Namibia at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kigali, Rwanda or the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the President of the Republic of Namibia is interacting with no less than 50 heads of government from other countries. Similarly, when the Namibian President is delivering a statement at the annual September meetings of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, USA, our head of State is in the company of over 100 heads of state and government.
Therefore, a need for clarification, if not education is necessary about the diplomatic engagements of the President. The President undertakes different types of missions, of which some are about the “high politics” of statecraft as security and survival, when others are about the “low politics” of trade, social affairs and commerce.
Thus, when the head of State responds to official multilateral or bilateral invitations to participate in state visits or summits outside national borders, these are first and foremost considered carefully in terms of the national interest and what Namibians stand to gain. These missions are undertaken in light of the fact that the President is constitutionally vested with a variety of duties and executive powers, including negotiating treaties with foreign governments to advance the national interest.
As a matter of fact, with the intensification of issues in the international arena, the President declines many invitations or would delegate them to other key officials in government, including the vice president, the prime minister or the deputy prime minister. On occasions, if and when possible, the President also participates virtually in these platforms.
In some instances, Namibia’s participation might not be deemed necessary. However, for the sake of the curious journalist and analyst, it is necessary to state that there are key multilateral or bilateral platforms where Namibia’s voice at the highest level is crucial in advancement of the national developmental agenda. For example, Namibia is a leading country in the African Union Peace and Security Council, the AU Committees on Reform of the United Nations Security Council, including Education and the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative.
As a member of the United Nations, deriving obvious benefits through the United Nations system, Namibia is expected to participate in key summits that affect our interests and take decisions on the future of humanity. Moreover, Namibia is one of the founding countries of the Oceans Panel, whose work focus on sustainability of the world oceans. President Geingob is currently the Deputy Chairperson of the SADC Organ on Peace, Defence and Security Cooperation and will assume the role of Chair of the Organ in the month of August 2022.
In the realm of foreign policy, where the President as per the constitution interacts, negotiates and concludes agreements with foreign governments, the nexus between the domestic and the external are two sides of the same coin. Namibia is not an island. Therefore, our socioeconomic development and prosperity as a country depends on the strength of our political and economic partnerships.
The strength of these partnerships is of benefit to all Namibian citizens, including journalists who are also beneficiaries of the development that accrues from the robust diplomatic engagements of the President. Since assuming office, President Hage Geingob has transparently opened up what has largely been the arcane world of diplomacy to ensure that Namibians and journalists understand the activities of the President in the province of foreign policy.
Consistent with the ethos of transparency, regular press releases and updates about the activities of the President are provided to the public and the media during these missions. For the past two decades, economic diplomacy assumed an increasing role in the foreign policy of Namibia. Importantly, with the commodity crisis, recurrent droughts and Covid-19, the Geingob Presidency has since 2015 prioritized economic diplomacy as a crucial thrust in the interactions of Namibia with the outside world.
Therefore, certain missions are focussed on deepening commercial interests, including investment promotion and opening doors in new markets for Namibian products and services. This is particularly important for our small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which are in need bilateral agreements to enter certain markets. Through the economic diplomacies of the President, Namibia has unlocked tangible benefits, which will guarantee the prosperity of Namibia.
It is necessary to list a few:
1. After a comprehensive global market sounding exercise, Namibia received nine proposals from six developers to build a $10 billion green hydrogen and ammonia facility in the //Kharas region. If successfully concluded, this will be the single largest FDI in Namibia’s history.
The offer received was preceded by significant engagements on the international area by the Namibian Presidency to raise awareness about Namibia as the ideal location to manufacture green molecules.
2. Through the joint communique of intent with the Ministry of Education and Research in Germany, the government unlocked a 40 million euro grant from the German government to build green hydrogen pilot projects, to fund the national synthetic fuels strategy and the launch a green hydrogen scholarship program in Namibia.
3. The Kingdom of the Netherlands, through the Port of Rotterdam signed a cooperation agreement with Namibia, with an emphasis on port development. A package of €250 000 was pledged from the Dutch to assist Namport with the relevant port master plan studies.
4. On the margins of the Berlin Energy transition dialogue, the minister of mines and energy entered into a joint deceleration of intent with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Change from Germany. This agreement will centre around enabling the production and trade of green molecules in Namibia with Germany. The German government has also agreed to design a package that will help Namibia become energy self-sufficient.
5. After the World Economic Forum, the government received an unsolicited offer to enter into a joint venture agreement to create a continental manufacturing hub for green hydrogen and its related equipment and wares in Namibia. The Ministry of Mines and Energy has been tasked to review the viability of this strategic offer.
6. Following extensive interactions between the President of the Republic of Namibia and the Emir of Qatar in February 2022, the Qatar Investment Authority with assets under management in excess of $300 billion visited Namibia in May 2022, and expressed an interest to invest in transport & logistics related infrastructure, tourism enterprises and the agricultural sector. Through the Qatar Investment Authority-backed Kasada Capital Management, Qatar has recently acquired Hotel Safari through a $2.6 billion facility granted by the IFC.
7. The Namibian government has received interest from a Japanese consortium to develop green hydrogen assets in the Tsau Khaeb National Park. The consortium is looking to design, build, operate the facility and off-take the molecules produced.
8. Through its participation in various multilateral fora, the government of Namibia is currently crafting a special memorandum of understanding with the European Union Commission to collaborate on green hydrogen and critical raw materials with an emphasis on value addition on these key components of a just energy transition taking place in Namibia. The MoU is expected to be signed at COP27 in Egypt.
In light of the above, the Presidency is encouraging journalists and analysts to acquaint themselves with the practice of diplomacy and foreign policy in order to educate the public better about the obvious benefits of peace, security and prosperity that accrue to citizens as a result of the President’s engagements with the world outside
Namibia.
Namibia is committed to do more with less and to optimize its diplomatic footprint across the five continents by placing greater emphasis on peace, security and economic interests, as embodied in the Policy on International Relations & Cooperation. In that vein, consistent with the national interest, President Geingob will continue lead the pace at which Namibia engages with other nations and institutions.
* Dr Alfredo Hengari is the Presidential spokesperson