EDITORIAL: Let’s be assertive on mineral exports
It was encouraging to see President Hage Geingob reiterate government's position to investors this week in light of Cabinet's potential game-changing restriction on the export of unprocessed critical minerals.
The concept, which is now taking shape after decades of fruitless discussions, aims to gain more control over our natural resources and encourage local processing, which would boost local infrastructure, jobs and tax revenue for the state.
As a result, we have seen murmurs of discontent from the likes of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), but there is very little international regulation to limit resource nationalism. Despite being one of the wealthiest countries in the world in terms of minerals, many Namibians merely subsist rather than prosper and enjoy what the Lord has endowed us with.
Namibia is one of the biggest uranium producers in the world, a major diamond producer and has a significant hard rock lithium deposit, but what do we have to show for all these volumes? Absolutely zilch!
We need to be assertive, especially now that there is an increased global demand for natural resources and the ongoing energy transition to a low-carbon world.
Namibia, just like its African peers, will be at the centre of this evolution, so the timing of our Cabinet’s decision couldn’t have been better. At least amid all this, Namibia is not necessarily seeking ownership of resources already in private hands but rather the development of local value chains. Fair game!
The concept, which is now taking shape after decades of fruitless discussions, aims to gain more control over our natural resources and encourage local processing, which would boost local infrastructure, jobs and tax revenue for the state.
As a result, we have seen murmurs of discontent from the likes of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), but there is very little international regulation to limit resource nationalism. Despite being one of the wealthiest countries in the world in terms of minerals, many Namibians merely subsist rather than prosper and enjoy what the Lord has endowed us with.
Namibia is one of the biggest uranium producers in the world, a major diamond producer and has a significant hard rock lithium deposit, but what do we have to show for all these volumes? Absolutely zilch!
We need to be assertive, especially now that there is an increased global demand for natural resources and the ongoing energy transition to a low-carbon world.
Namibia, just like its African peers, will be at the centre of this evolution, so the timing of our Cabinet’s decision couldn’t have been better. At least amid all this, Namibia is not necessarily seeking ownership of resources already in private hands but rather the development of local value chains. Fair game!
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