Namibia and Germany sign off agreements for N$770 m

THE Governments of Namibia and Germany signed three co-operation support agreements on Monday to the tune of N$770 million (70m euros), which include the N$200 million for the Namibian-German special initiative for those communities that suffered under Imperial Germany’s colonial rule a century ago.

Germany’s support was agreed on in November 2007 but could only be signed now due to ‘delays’, Dr Peter Katjavivi, Director General of the National Planning Commission (NPC) said.Through the financial co-operation agreement, the German government will make 55.1 million euros (N$606 million) available in support of financial systems development, transport and assistance to co-financing of land reform programmes in communal areas and community forests in north-eastern Namibia. Part of the funds will further go to the developing of the Bwabwata, Mudumu and Mamili national parks.Twenty million euros (about N$220 million) of the 55.1 million euros will be for the special Namibia-German Initiative which has been in the pipeline for the past four years. The first beneficiaries under this initiative have already received livestock as donation and the community of Ovitoto, east of Okahandja, received a fire-fighting engine last Friday.Under the technical co-operation agreement, Germany will make available 12 million euros (N$132 million) in the form of personnel, inputs, and financial contribution to water resource management – thereby strengthening the capacity of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism in the fields of biodiversity, conservation and sustainable natural resource management, and human resource development at the Geological Survey of Namibia.Institutional development and management capacity in the road sector will also be strengthened, while support in HIV-Aids control, the Studies and Expert Fund and partnership for economic growth are also included.Another 3 million euros (N$33 million) will flow to the Education and Training Sector Programe (Etsip) during this financial year through the German Financial Co-operation programme.Apart from the 3 million euros for Etsip, Germany had already provided about N$140 million to education since Independence, German Ambassador to Namibia Egon Kochanke said at the ceremony. ‘Despite the global economic downturn, which has also affected Germany – a negative economic growth of minus six per cent – our government has decided to uphold and even slightly increase our level of official development assistance to countries next year to send out a clear signal that it is part of a long-term commitment to strategic partnership,’ Ambassador Kochanke stressed. New talks for bilateral cooperation would start end of this month in Swakopmund, he added. ‘I reassure you that our exceptionally strong commitment to Namibia – rooted in our uniquely close historical and cultural ties, will remain unaffected by the global crisis.’Since independence Germany has contributed over 500 million euros (about N$5,5 billion) to Namibia’s development.