Desie Heita
30 October 2008
Windhoek — Government has thrown an additional financial lifeline to the troubled national transportation enterprise, TransNamib, through a loan guarantee.
The Development Bank of Namibia gave N$14 million to TransNamib as a bridging facility.
The recent prolonged industrial strike incapacitated operations at TransNamib and nearly paralysed the important sectors of the economy, as the national transport company was unable to transport crucial commodities such as fuel and building materials.
TransNamib employees went on a six-day strike in September demanding the reinstatement of the Chief Executive Officer, Titus Haimbili, whom the board put on suspension pending an investigation. The strike drained the coffers of TransNamib, leaving it unable to pay salaries for its workers. It eventually approached Government for a N$52 million bail-out but Government only approved N$14.2 million from the central
Government's contingency fund and suggested that the parastatal approach Deve-lopment Bank of Namibia (DBN) for the additional money.
Chief Executive Officer for DBN, David Nuyoma, says subsequent to a financial request from TransNamib the Board of Directors of DBN had an extraordinary meeting where they approved the application for the N$14 million based on job retention. Nuyoma says the financial assistance to TransNamib would contribute to the stabilisation of the immediate future of the company by providing the means to secure the incomes of its more than 1700 employees and their dependants.
"[The decision to award bridging finance] was taken on the merits of what they are, the importance of infrastructure and transportation of essential commodities such as cement and fuel. It was also taken on good understanding that all measures are being put in place to bring to normal the operations at TransNamib," says Nuyoma.
The bridging facility to TransNamib is one of the 20 multi-million-dollar bridging facilities that DBN granted to various corporations between May and October 23.
Nuyoma says the carrier will play a key role in the envisaged future of Namibia within the structures of the proposed free trade areas.
"Namibia has embarked on an aggressive programme of developing rail infrastructure, over the course of three years. Currently, in terms of the regionalisation initiatives being developed across Africa, Namibia will be a key player in the Southern Africa Development Communities (SADC) free trade area and the envisaged tripartite free trade area of 26 African countries.
Although the infrastructure is being put in place, it is vital that there be institutional capacity to manage the infrastructure. The short measure of retaining jobs at TransNamib is an important step to securing institutional capacity," said Nuyoma.
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