CABINET has decided to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Environment to manage the effects of climate change in Namibia, Environment and Tourism Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah announced.

"By the end of the year we hope to have the new structures for our Ministry in place. Although a national climate change committee has been in place for some time, it is not functioning properly, thus Cabinet decided to restructure the Ministry," Nandi-Ndaitwah said at a business breakfast on Thursday.

The event was hosted by the Windhoek Chapter of the Namibia Chamber for Commerce and Industry (NCCI) and sponsored by NamPower.

According to Ndaitwah, the Ministry was finalising a strategy to manage climate change in Namibia by June this year. This would entail new legislation.

"Before we put laws in place like - as an example - that [new] buildings should be equipped with solar water geysers, we must know if this will create local jobs, if solar panels are made in Namibia and how the carbon footprints are being reduced," the Minister said.

"Our Ministry will organise a one-day workshop for Cabinet members soon, including President Hifikepunye Pohamba, to familiarise all Ministers with the topic and developments since the Copenhagen climate summit in Denmark last December," she added.

"Polluters buy carbon credits in developing countries in order to 'clean' their environmentally unfriendly actions, we must handle that very carefully," the Minister said.

Industrialised countries decided in Copenhagen in December 2009 that they would make US$30 billion available until 2012 to assist developing countries and another US$100 billion until 2020 to tackle the effects of climate change, since these countries would bear the brunt of droughts, poor harvests or floods.

"We must see to it that these funds do not indebt developing countries. We will strengthen our capacity to assess what Namibia needs and how to make use of such funds," she added.

About four years ago, Cabinet decided that all public buildings should be fitted with solar water heaters.

Last year, Finance Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila announced the introduction of an environmental tax or levy that would be introduced in Namibia "for those that cause pollution". So far no details have been announced about how this levy will be implemented.