New airport terminal inaugurated at Walvis

THE N$100 million terminal for the Walvis Bay International Airport was inaugurated by President Hage Geingob last Friday.

According to Namibia Airports Company (NAC) board chairperson Ndeuhala Lewis, the new terminal’s capacity has increased to handle 200 passengers per hour, or a million per year.

She said it was decided to modernise most of Namibia’s airports to be able to handle increased traffic transport demands for both people and goods.

“Most airports in Namibia were military airports, and served us well when traffic was low,” Lewis noted, indicating though that times have changed. With the growing economy and population dynamics, NAC decided to upgrade many of the airports.

Besides the terminal, the airport also enjoys a N$250 million runway upgrade, which allows it to handle larger aircraft and more air traffic, and a N$10 million revamp of the airport’s firefighting and emergency unit.

Meanwhile, works and transport minister Alpheus !Naruseb said the development of infrastructure was crucial to Namibia’s socio-economic development.

He also emphasised the vision of Walvis Bay becoming an import and export hub for the SADC region, especially landlocked nations, and that the airport was key in this vision.

Geingob pointed out that the terminal of what is now Namibia’s second international airport (after the Hosea Kutako International Airport near Windhoek) was a sign of the country’s drive to develop its economy, and so create prosperity for all Namibians.

“Continued growth is the answer to improve the economy, eradicate poverty and sustain prosperity. We cannot stagnate. That is why infrastructural development is a priority in our national development plans,” said the President.

Earlier this month, The Namibian reported that the new terminal’s building plans had not been approved – after nearly six years since the project was introduced.

These plans are necessary for the municipality to issue a completion certificate, which is crucial for businesses to operate in the terminal, as well as for the connection of key services such as water, electricity and telephones.

NAC’s strategic executive for business strategy Toska Sem, however, confirmed to last Friday at the unveiling of the terminal plaque by Geingob that the building plans had been submitted and approved.

The airport is considered a key component in Walvis Bay’s aim to becoming a logistics hub in the SADC region, and will be complemented by the new SADC Gateway Port under construction as well as the upgrade of the Trans-Kalahari Corridor from Walvis Bay to the rest of the region.

Larger aeroplanes such as Boeing 747s and even the A380 Airbus can be accommodated at the airport, and cargo and passenger numbers are expected to increase manifold.

The previous terminal, which was built about 30 years ago, had become too small to handle an ever-increasing flow of passengers. It had the capacity to deal with about 50 people per peak hour, whereas the new terminal would handle up to 200 people per peak hour.

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