South Africa, Namibia Sign Seven Agreements, Eye Stronger Regional Value Chains
South Africa and Namibia signed seven cooperation agreements Both countries want stronger regional mining, oil and gas value chains South African companies invested $1. 2 billion in Namibia from 2023 to 2025 South Africa and Namibia signed seven cooperation agreements on Friday, July 17, during the fourth session of their Binational. . .
South Africa and Namibia signed seven cooperation agreementsBoth countries want stronger regional mining, oil and gas value chainsSouth African companies invested $1. 2 billion in Namibia from 2023 to 2025South Africa and Namibia signed seven cooperation agreements on Friday, July 17, during the fourth session of their Binational Commission, co-chaired by Presidents Cyril Ramaphosa and Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah. Seven Agreements Broaden Bilateral CooperationThe agreements cover labor and employment, legal cooperation, air services, correctional services, capacity building in public administration, cooperation between the two countries’ chambers of commerce, and gender equality and women’s empowerment. “The two Presidents reviewed the full spectrum of bilateral relations and expressed satisfaction with the steady growth of cooperation between the two countries. They reiterated their commitment to further strengthening political, economic, social and cultural relations for the mutual benefit of their peoples,” the statement said. Beyond the agreements themselves, Pretoria and Windhoek want to develop regional value chains in mining, oil and gas. Their plans place particular emphasis on exploration, research, technology, skills development and processing more raw materials locally. Regional Integration Moves Up the AgendaThe talks also focused on speeding up regional and continental integration efforts. The two governments cited the Southern African Development Community’s Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan for 2020-2030, the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the African Continental Free Trade Area among the initiatives requiring faster implementation. South Africa is already one of Namibia’s leading economic partners. Between 2023 and 2025, more than 50 South African companies invested about $1. 2 billion in Namibia, helping create nearly 4,900 jobs across mining, banking, insurance, real estate and renewable energy, according to the statement. Established in 2013, the South Africa-Namibia Binational Commission is the two countries’ main forum for managing bilateral relations. Since then, Pretoria and Windhoek have signed 75 agreements and memorandums of understanding spanning political, economic, social, security and environmental cooperation. With the latest agreements, the two governments are seeking to deepen economic ties through local processing, industrial development and stronger regional value chains. Carelle Yourann