‘Namibia’s coast has many uses’ – Green Paper on policy to be finalised by year-end

The Namibian coast is viewed as a zone with multiple uses, where conservation and development can go hand-in-hand.

The public and other stakeholders have been invited to attend meetings to finalise the formulation of a Coastal Policy, the co-ordinator of the Namibian Coast Conservation and Management project in the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET), Timo Mufeti, said yesterday. Mufeti told Nampa that the formulation of a policy has now reached the important stage of reviewing the draft Green Paper, which is reflecting the opinions of the public and specialist study inputs since the coastal policy process started in November last year.”The Green Paper, to be processed into the White Paper, will eventually become a government document, stipulating the future policy on the management of the coast, conservation and sustainable development, and from which possible legislation may be drafted.These are some of the opinions contained in a draft Green Paper, forerunner to a Namibian Coastal White Paper that will be discussed during a further eight public meetings commencing next week,” he noted.According to Mufeti, the planned series of public meetings will serve as a further opportunity for the public and stakeholders to scrutinise the draft Green Paper and to provide more inputs, opinions and ideas to ensure that the most suitable policy for Namibia’s coast is developed.Strong calls were made for programmes which will raise awareness on the coast among all sectors of society, he said.He emphasised that with it’s long coastline, Namibia can be regarded as a maritime nation, yet ignorance reigns and there is poor access to information about the coast.”As many inputs as possible should be made by the public as well as specialist studies, as this is their final chance,” he added.The Green Paper will be finalised by the end of the year, after which the White Paper will be processed and finalised towards July 2009.- NampaMufeti told Nampa that the formulation of a policy has now reached the important stage of reviewing the draft Green Paper, which is reflecting the opinions of the public and specialist study inputs since the coastal policy process started in November last year.”The Green Paper, to be processed into the White Paper, will eventually become a government document, stipulating the future policy on the management of the coast, conservation and sustainable development, and from which possible legislation may be drafted.These are some of the opinions contained in a draft Green Paper, forerunner to a Namibian Coastal White Paper that will be discussed during a further eight public meetings commencing next week,” he noted.According to Mufeti, the planned series of public meetings will serve as a further opportunity for the public and stakeholders to scrutinise the draft Green Paper and to provide more inputs, opinions and ideas to ensure that the most suitable policy for Namibia’s coast is developed.Strong calls were made for programmes which will raise awareness on the coast among all sectors of society, he said.He emphasised that with it’s long coastline, Namibia can be regarded as a maritime nation, yet ignorance reigns and there is poor access to information about the coast.”As many inputs as possible should be made by the public as well as specialist studies, as this is their final chance,” he added.The Green Paper will be finalised by the end of the year, after which the White Paper will be processed and finalised towards July 2009. – Nampa