De Beers Group, Namdeb, Debmarine Namibia and Namibia Diamond Trading Company (NDTC) recently pledged a combined N$26 million to support the Covid-19 vaccine rollout in Namibia. The pledge will comprise financial support as well as a range of in-kind support to assist with the rollout of the Namibia vaccination campaign.
The support is being funded through a contribution of N$13 million from De Beers Group and a combined N$13 million from Namdeb, Debmarine Namibia and NDTC. The share of the pledge to be contributed by De Beers Group forms part of Anglo American’s global commitment to support national vaccine programmes in the countries it operates.
Namibia De Beers partnership will continue to engage with government and consider the best ways for the financial contribution to assist in procuring vaccines for the benefit of Namibia’s population, while in-kind support will include the provision of medical facilities, personnel, equipment and supplies to assist with the delivery of the vaccine rollout.
Namibia De Beers partnership is committed to the fair and equitable distribution of vaccines and support the priority approach as defined by the National Deployment and Vaccination Plan (NDVP) for Covid-19 in Namibia.
CEO Bruce Cleaver of the De Beers Group and chairperson of the Namdeb Holdings Board said: “As we collectively respond to the impacts of Covid-19, it is clear that partnership is more important than ever, and we remain focused on finding the best ways to help meet the needs of our partners. In
Namibia and around the world, Covid-19 has had a huge impact on everyone’s lives, and vaccines provide us with a path towards health and economic recovery. I would like to pay tribute to the sterling leadership provided by Otto Shikongo in Debmarine Namibia, Riaan Burger in Namdeb and Brent Eiseb in NDTC during these most trying times. Through a combination of financial support for national vaccine procurement and the provision of medical facilities, personnel, equipment and supplies, we are committed to playing a meaningful role in supporting Namibia’s national vaccine rollout and helping protect its citizens from the virus”.
The contribution to the national vaccine rollout programme in Namibia follows the support Namibia De Beers partnership have provided to date in Namibia to help respond to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In 2020, De Beers provided a N$15 million in-kind contribution, enabling the procurement of a PCR testing machine, support for the establishment of border screening facilities (in partnership with the Anglo American Namibia foundation), and supporting the upgrade of the Lüderitz Hospital
High Care Unit in partnership with Debmarine Namibia.
Namdeb played a pivotal role in supporting communities around Lüderitz, Aus and Rosh-Pinah, as households’ means were coming under pressure during the early stages of the pandemic, by providing food parcels and increasing school
support for vulnerable families. Namdeb also provided isolation facilities in Lüderitz, which are used by the Ministry of Health and Social Services to isolate and treat Covid-19 positive patients.
Debmarine Namibia was the first private sector corporate to collaborate with the University of Namibia (Unam) to place two fully functional PCR testing units at Unam. This collaboration has dual benefits: strengthening the Unam knowledge base on Covid-19 testing, as well as supporting the Debmarine Namibia operations and complementing national testing efforts. Thirty high-spec ventilators were also donated to the Ministry of Health and Social Services for placement at various hospitals. Meanwhile, NDTC provided a range of support to all its employees and their families to ensure safe and continuous operations, albeit with stringent Covid-19-related measures in place.