2016-11-21Staff Report 2 Windhoek A new crop of diplomats may soon be trained at an academy that specialises in diplomacy and international relations, revealed the Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Maureen Hinda. Hinda made the revelation while addressing the media during the third round of diplomatic consultation between Namibia and Portugal at a meeting held in Windhoek last week. The media briefing was shared by Portuguese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Teresa Ribeiro, and her delegation. Ribeiro and her delegation arrived here two weeks ago and departed last week. They were in Namibia to renew, among others, the memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding Portuguese language courses for the Namibian police that expired last year and the MoU on Portuguese as a foreign language in Namibia’s education system. “Our ministry is in the process of establishing its own diplomatic academy as part of the Namibia Institute of Public Administration and Management (NIPAM),” said the deputy minister of international relations and cooperation. “I am informed Portugal has a well-established diplomatic institute run by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which offers undergraduate and post-graduate courses in international relations and diplomacy. Therefore there is a need for our two ministries to cooperate in this area,” she added. Hinda also used the opportunity to call upon the Portuguese government to support Namibia in appointments of Namibians to senior positions in the United Nations system. “We have the capacity to contribute globally through multilateral organisations such as the United Nations and its agencies,” she said. She said Namibia is a peaceful, democratic small country that has the necessary systems, infrastructure and public standing, proven by its rating both in Africa and internationally, and as a child of international solidarity is ready to play its part. “As you are aware, Hon. Deputy Minister (Ribeiro) we lost our bid to host the World HQ of the Green Climate Fund to South Korea, but we wish to count on your support to host the African regional hub of the Green Climate Fund as we are endorsed by the African Union,” she said. Hinda reaffirmed Namibia’s commitment to work with the Portuguese government to move the countries’ economic and political agendas to new heights. 2016-11-21Staff Report 2
