Staff Reporter
THE Russian Prime Minister and Chairperson of the Russian Party of Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation, Yury Trutnev, held talks with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Of International Relations And Cooperation, Netumbo Nande-Ndaitwah, during which it was stated that Russia plays a key role in Namibia’s industrialization agenda, as well as in the areas of trade, such as Agriculture, Mining, and Health.
Speaking at the event, Nande-Ndaitwah said that Namibia is looking forward to working closely with the Russian Federation in different areas of cooperation. “In the last years, we have continuously experienced crop failures. We hope to have a better harvest next year. On the economic front, Industrialization is one of our critical pillars in the development agenda. We want to strengthen it with our Russian Federation cooperation. In an effort to promote different industrialization programs, the Russian Federation remains an important partner in many ways. We want to thank you for the various Russian investments in Namibia,” the minister said.
She added that due to COVID-19, there has been a decline in trade between the two countries. Nande-Ndaitwah, however, said that the time has come for that to pick up. “There has been a decrease in the importation of wheat from Russia, from our private sector, which is our main player. We appreciated the Africa Summit meeting that took place in Russia. We welcome the commitments made by Putin. It is our hope that during this meeting we will go into the details and see how we can make use of what has been decided at the last Africa-Russia summit. Our cooperation has been strong in the areas of agriculture, mining, and health. These will continue to be dominant in cooperation,” she said.
The Minister of International Relations further encouraged Russia to peacefully resolve its conflict with Ukraine, adding that peace and security remain a prerequisite for any development. “Namibia will continue to support the maintenance of peace and security in our region and the world at large. As guided by our constitution, we will continue to advocate that any conflict be solved through negotiation to avoid high losses of life and destruction of property. Within the SADC programs, we will continue to engage in the situation in DRC and eastern Mozambique. At the international level, we believe the security council will play its role and ensure international conflicts are solved peacefully. We are aware of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. That’s not an exception. We know that negotiation and diplomacy are the way to go and should be encouraged. The same applies to the unfortunate situation happening in Gaza. As an international community, we have the duty to protect the rights of the people,” Nande-Ndaitwah said.
Giving his remarks, the Russian Prime Minister, Trutnev congratulated Nande-Ndaitwah on her election as Swapo Vice President. “Swapo is a party that represents the majority of the Namibian population and enjoys well-deserved respect not only in Namibia but in Russia and the international community. Our work will strengthen our cooperation and contribute to the well-being of the peoples of our countries. We have the same position on most world agenda issues. In preparing for this meeting, I have had a couple of meetings with Russian companies that are interested in investing in Namibia. I hope that we will have time to discuss these proposals,” Trutnev said.
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