President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has told New York that the transition to clean energy should not come at the expense of development in countries like Namibia.

Interviewed at the 'Unstoppable Africa' conference organised by the United Nations and the African Union, Nandi-Ndaitwah on Sunday said the country's development requires energy.

"We are at the initial stage of our development. As a country which is mineral-based, we are setting ourselves [up] for industrialisation. For this to happen, we need energy," she said.

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Namibia, southern Africa, and Africa as a whole have an energy gap that needs to be filled.

"As a country we believe in mixed energy. We believe in reducing emissions; we have our own national target. But it's also true that energy transition should not happen at the expense of developing countries," she said.

Critical Minerals Africa Group chief executive Veronica Smith asked Nandi-Ndaitwah about the Hyphen Hydrogen Energy green hydrogen project and the country's energy future.

"Green hydrogen is one of the projects we can talk about, but I have to mention that Namibia [has] discovered oil and gas. For us, it's not a choice between green hydrogen and oil and gas," the president said.

Rather, the country will pursue all types of energy generation to meet its development needs, she said.

The president said skills development is an additional foundation to Namibia's energy future.

"We need skills in almost every sector, particularly in the new industries.

"When the Hyphen project was initiated, knowing that we don't have the necessary skills, a group of young Namibians were identified to be given scholarships to prepare them to work in the hydrogen industry," she said.