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NDP4 to be finalised end of April

(From left to right) Florentia Amuenje, board member of the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), Tom Alweendo, director general of the National Planning Commission, John Steytler, newly appointed CEO of the NSA and Paul Hartman, chairman of the NSA board, at the feedback session of the 4th National Development Plan (NDP4). (Photograph by Lorato Khobetsi)The National Planning Commission this week gave feedback on the progress made on the processing of crafting the 4th five-year National Development Plan. The development plan, which is expected to be released early May, will be finalised by end of April.
Speaking at the feedback session, Tom Alweendo, director general of the National Planning Commission, said development is so complex because it affects all citizens and because each citizen has different needs and different expectations.
Alweendo further said in order to make sure the outcome of the plan includes everyone, it is necessary to consult all the stakeholders involved. The consultations that started last year, are still ongoing and are expected to be concluded latest in April.
According to the DG, Namibia has many development challenges that need to be addressed, however it is impossible to do everything at once, not only because the country has limited  financial resources but also because there is not sufficient human resources to focus on too many issues.
“There is a consensus among the stakeholders that the most pressing challenges facing us as a nation that need prioritisation are that of inadequate economic growth, unemployment and the inequality associated with how national income is being distributed among the citizens,” he said.
Alweendo added that the development plan will identify the binding constraints with regards to these three challenges and make proposals to remove them. Having identified the constraints, high level strategies will then be proposed to remove the constraints.
“The plan also makes the case that our challenges can be addressed successfully only if we are prepared to do what it takes to create new industries. It will not be easy but it is something that needs to be done. It is no use saying in our Vision 2030 that we want to be industrialised country, but we are not prepared to do what it takes to start industries,” he said.
Alweendo further said that Namibia has a comparative advantage to become a successful transport hub but the country has to modernise all its transport modes, starting with the harbour, rail, road and air transportation.
He added that the plan must look at the possibility of establishing industries that will serve as input into the mining sector.
“The intention is to make sure that our implementation strategies are clear, with clearly demarcated responsibility. We need to start embracing a mind set that we are capable of doing things,” Alweendo concluded.

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