Vice President tells Council of Traditional Leaders to help revive economy
By Adolf Kaure.
Namibia’s Vice President, His Excellency Nangolo Mbumba said that every Namibian citizen has a collective responsibility to revive the country’s economy for shared prosperity when he spoke at the opening day of the 24th annual meeting for the Council of Traditional Leaders, which commenced on Monday at Swakopmund.
According to Mbumba, all Namibians are expected to practice their traditions and cultures in a manner that respects the rights of others and contributes to the process of national building and national reconciliation.
“Cultural beliefs are the glue that holds communities together.”
“It is our collective duty to hold hands and revive our nation so that we can move forward, as a Namibia ready to achieve her destiny; a Namibia defined by unity and shared national identity; a Namibia defined by peace and social harmony and a Namibia defined by new economic opportunities and growth,” he said as he spoke on behalf of Namibia’s President, His Excellency Dr Hage Geingob.
Namibia’s economic trajectory indicates that Namibia has entered a period of revival, with green shoots on the horizon. According to recent statistics from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Namibia’s Gross Domestic Product is expected to increase by 2.9% in 2024.
The Vice President added that the country’s economic success is dependent on the unity of citizens working for one common goal. “I have the utmost confidence that to achieve economic emancipation for all, Namibia must be propelled forward by the collective efforts of its people.”
“The success of our country does not depend on one singular person but on each and every citizen; each and every son and daughter of our soil must become a catalyst for development and change.”
“As a leader, I can dream and point to the direction of prosperity, but it is up to all of us, as a collective, to actualize these dreams and manifest them into reality because success can only be achieved, when the people are united behind a common purpose,” said Mbumba.
Also speaking at the occasion, the Chairperson of the Council of Traditional Leaders, Immanuel /Gâseb urged the leaders to participate in food security initiatives and enhance crop production through farming as one of the strategies to address poverty in Namibia.
“ I urge Traditional Authorities not to be the stumbling block in land allocation to government sectors, Regional Councils, Local Authorities and other investors who wish to acquire land for agricultural projects that will address food security, poverty and unemployment but to be the supporting mechanism to avail such land.”
“This must be done in accordance with the laws of the country and Traditional Authorities must benefit from this process,” said /Gâseb.
The Council of Traditional Leaders is a national institute of the Government of Namibia where the traditional leadership of Namibia is represented. It was established by Act 13 of 1997 (Act 31 of 2000 as amended) to advise the President on the control and utilisation of communal land and other matters.
The four-day meeting concludes on Friday, 17 November.
