Bank of Namibia and Banco Nacional de Angola formalize partnership to deepen historic ties and bonds
The Bank of Namibia (BoN) and Banco Nacional de Angola (BNA) have signed a memorandum of Agreement (MoA) this week to facilitate sustained cooperation and formalize technical collaboration and partnership between the two institutions.
According to a statement by the bank’s Director: Strategic Communications and International Relations, Kazembire Zemburuka, under the rubric of the excellent bilateral cooperation between the two neighbouring countries, the two central banks have prioritized trade facilitation through payment system integration enabled by digital capabilities as a means of realizing the efficient movement of goods and services between the two countries.
The Bank’s spokesperson on Monday said another strategic focus area of the partnership is the elimination of revenue leakages for the respective countries by providing timely and accurate data and empirical evidence in terms of misaligned trade data to the detriment of revenue mobilization.
“The collaboration will involve sharing data and research into trade and related financial transactions for mitigation efforts,” he added.
Accordingly, the agreement was hailed by the Governor of the Bank of Namibia, Mr. Johannes !Gawaxab, and his counterpart, Mr. Jose de Lima Massano, as a landmark agreement that will deepen the historic ties and bonds between the two states.
Meanwhile, Zemburuka said, in this regard, the institutions have agreed to focus on effective utilization of the existing regional cross-border payment systems and exploring retail payment options such as prepaid cards for the payment of goods and services.
He added that other solutions currently being explored are trade-related guarantees between the banking institutions of the two countries.
He also noted that the collaboration would involve sharing data and research into trade and related financial transactions for mitigation efforts.
“Furthermore, sharing of knowledge on financial inclusion initiatives will be prioritized to ensure that the peoples of both countries have access to quality, affordable, and a broad spectrum of financial services,” stated the Bank’s spokesperson.
Zemburuka said that although both countries acknowledged that the defunct currency conversion agreement, which previously allowed the exchange of currencies at the border towns was beneficial, the two central banks have ruled out the activation of this conversion agreement presently. He noted that two central banks are, in turn, prioritising more convenient and cost-effective methods to facilitate trade.
“A technical committee has been formed with institutional arrangements in place to ensure the agreement is fully executed,” he revealed, adding that the agreement also establishes a bilateral forum for the exchange of technical knowledge and cooperation in cognate central banking functions.
He emphasized that this will greatly benefit the two central banks in carrying out their respective mandates.
“We are making concerted efforts to improve the smooth integration of our payment infrastructure for the benefit of our businesspeople, traders, and citizens. We have no illusions that this will be an easy task, but given the lofty expectations of our two governments and the demands of our business community, we must deliver on all fronts. In doing so, we will meet our people’s aspirations and build the Africa we want. We are hopeful that our ties and bonds as a people who share so much more than a border will be strengthened and deepened,” said !Gawaxab.
However, Zemburuka noted that outside of the technical discussions, the Governor and his delegation paid a courtesy call to Patrick Nandago, Ambassador of Namibia to Angola, to brief him on the outcome of the discussions.
Patrick Nandago; Ambassador of Namibia to Angola and Johannes !Gawaxab; Governor of the Bank of Namibia.
