Businesses need flood relief: NCCI

THE Namibian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) has launched a full-scale appeal to relieve the plight of more than 1 600 flood-stricken businesses in the North, which includes pushing Government for tax breaks, asking banks to suspend loan repayments and urging labour unions to approach salary increase demands with consideration.

NCCI President John Endjala yesterday referred to the dire situation of these businesses as a double tragedy.’These floods are coinciding with the devastating global crisis which has hit our economy hard. This double tragedy is putting a lot of pressure on our businesses,’ he said.According to the Chamber’s estimates, more than 1 600 businesses in all the affected regions have been temporarily closed since February. Endjala stressed that there are numerous other businesses which were also hit by the flood, although they did not have to shut their doors. Last year less than 1 000 businesses came to a halt.According to NCCI Chief Executive Officer Tarah Shaanika, between 10 000 and 16 000 workers are directly affected by this year’s flooding.Endjala said commercial banks, through the Bankers’ Association of Namibia (BAN), have already indicated their willingness to suspend the loan repayments of flood-crippled businesses until they are up and running again. All that is needed now is permission from the Bank of Namibia (BoN) that banks may delay these commitments for the time being.The BoN granted such a waiver during last year’s floods, Shaanika said.The NCCI intends negotiating with Government on tax relief for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the disaster areas.Shaanika remarked that tax breaks for the SME sector have been on the table for some time in any case, and that now is an opportune time for Government to implement it.Tax cuts will mean bigger profits for SMEs in these hard times, and will allow entrepreneurs to plough the extra money back into the business. This will not only retain jobs, but also create jobs, Shaanika explained.Endjala appealed to labour unions to ‘understand the difficulties of businesses when it comes to salary increases this year’. Some businesses have had to cease their operations for up to three months, he said.The NCCI also intends to talk to the Development Bank of Namibia (DBN) over being more accommodating in assessing loan applications.’Most of those affected are in retailing because of the nature of their businesses, but those who want to diversify are unable to do so because of lack of funding,’ Endjala said.RIGHT RESPONSESThe Chamber is concerned about the speed of the national response to the floods.Although Government and other stakeholders responded swiftly and decisively to the flood last year, ‘we feel that we moved too slowly in crafting and implementing long-term plans for long-term solutions to future floods’, Endjala said.The NCCI is aware of the difficulty in preventing flood damage in the North, but believes that the impact can be softened by suitable drainage systems, especially at Katima Mulilo, Rundu, Helao Nafidi, Ondangwa, Ongwediva, Oshakati and Outapi.’We therefore need as a nation to put in place suitable drainage systems and water harvesting infrastructure in order to avoid severe damage to our infrastructure and businesses, as well as to put this water to good use,’ Endjala urged.The NCCI has been working closely with the Flood Emergency Management Co-operation Office (Femco), based at Oshakati, on ways to address future floods, he said.’We will also continue to encourage businesses to provide material and financial assistance to the Government towards addressing the flood situation, particularly towards finding long-term solutions to the floods,’ Endjala said. jo-mare@namibian.com.na