TransNamib makeover on track

TRANSNAMIB is determined to overhaul its image as a battling State-owned enterprise and to revive the ‘glory days’ of the railways in Namibia.

Senior managers of TransNamib this week met with high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Works and Transport and members of the TransNamib Board to clear the air on the company’s past, current and future challenges and to persuade the public that TransNamib was committed to becoming a vital part of the country’s economic growth.Titus Haimbili, chief executive officer of Trans-Namib, told Deputy Minister Chief Samuel Ankama and others during visits to several TransNamib sites that the company acknowledged the ‘legacy of challenges’ it had to overcome and was committed to address. He added that TransNamib was ‘not promising miracles’ but was ready and willing to ‘lay a sound foundation for the railways in Namibia’.TransNamib could become a vital part of railway infrastructure in Africa, a critical development need according to the African Development Bank.In Namibia particularly, a well-functioning railway system can be a critical asset, as the uranium-mining industry continues to grow and railway traffic volumes could double. Haimbili acknowledged the important role of Trans-Namib in line with the wish to develop the port of Walvis Bay into a transport hub of the SADC region.The company had to battle ‘an image of being a non-performing State-owned enterprise (SOE)’ and had been ‘haunted by a stigma of secrecy and a lack of active stakeholder involvement,’ he said.Haimbili introduced the company’s top management team during the site visit, and said their qualifications and crucial roles within the company’s structure should be enough to refute criticism describing them as ‘incompetent’ and ‘political appointees’.Other challenges include an aged railway network, which is approximately 100 years old. Its trains are past their sell-by date too, and the recently acquired Chinese locomotives have been heavily criticised.Profits since 2000 have been ‘elusive’, Haimbili said. He added that ‘this negative profit trend’ could have been influenced by the lack of updated annual financial reports and ‘unaccounted asset register and evaluations’.On the other end of the scale, Haimbili took stock of the company’s successes and achievements. Major achievements include the agreement with the Ohorongo Cement factory outside Otavi. The agreement, which is projected to rake in N$60 million annually, will make TransNamib responsible for the transport of coal and cement to and from the factory.Another project is an agreement with GPT Infraprojects Ltd to establish a factory in Tsumeb that will produce concrete railway sleepers.These sleepers will be used by TransNamib to upgrade critical railway lines across Namibia.Another important milestone is a reworked agreement with Beijing Zongs Railway Supplies in May 2010. Haimbili said the previous agreement with the railway supply company was flawed because of a stipulation that ‘upfront cash payment was required before any parts could be delivered’.This agreement had been revised and the delivery of parts should improve, Haimbili said.Haimbili also highlighted an N$80 million programme to refurbish 18 General Electric locomotives, and an SOE agreement with NamPort to share strategic business information and experience.TransNamib employs 1 636 people, making it one of the largest SOE employers in Namibia.