Nine newly accredited ambassadors and high commissioners have outlined areas they intend to pursue with Namibia after presenting their letters of credence to President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah at State House yesterday.
The envoys from Nigeria, Germany, Türkiye, Sudan, Philippines, Panama, Mali, Greece and Pakistan said their priorities include strengthening trade and investment, agriculture, technical assistance, education and training, maritime cooperation, tourism, ICT and business-to-business links.
The envoys are the first official representatives of their countries to begin their duties in Namibia following the presentation of their credentials.
President Nandi-Ndaitwah repeatedly stressed the need to strengthen existing relationships while opening new areas of cooperation.
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Nigeria
Nigeria's new High Commissioner, Esther Adebola Arewa, said her immediate focus is to strengthen the long-standing relationship between the two countries and revive technical assistance programmes.
"I'm here to further boost Nigeria-Namibia relations," Arewa said.
Nigeria supported Namibia's liberation struggle through political, technical, logistical and financial assistance. It also hosted Namibian students for secondary and tertiary education.
Diplomatic relations were established shortly after Namibia's independence in March 1990. The two countries signed a cooperation framework on 3 February 1992.
Nigeria later provided Technical Aid Corps specialists, teachers and other professionals to Namibia. Namibia also donated wild animals to Nigeria during the administration of founding President Sam Nujoma.
The two countries have continued cooperation in areas including education, health, environment, trade and culture.
Germany
Germany's new Ambassador, Thomas Wimmer, said his mission would focus on strengthening existing cooperation between Namibia and Germany.
"My mission as an ambassador is to strengthen, deepen and broaden these relationships, seek close cooperation with you, Your Excellency, with your government," Wimmer said.
Diplomatic relations between Namibia and Germany were established on 21 March 1990.
The relationship includes development cooperation, green hydrogen, tourism, culture, education and scientific cooperation.
During intergovernmental negotiations in November 2025, Germany committed about €43.8 million in grants and low-interest loans for development cooperation, including vocational training.
Germany also supports academic and cultural links involving Namibian institutions, German universities, the Goethe-Institut and other educational institutions.
The two countries are also engaged in discussions on reconciliation concerning Germany's colonial rule in Namibia and the genocide of Herero and Nama communities.
Türkiye
Türkiye's new Ambassador, Fikriye Asli Güven, said she would continue programmes started by her predecessor and increase economic cooperation.
"In my tenure, I'm planning to build upon my predecessor's work," Güven said.
She also said Türkiye would work to increase trade and investment and continue using the existing Turkish-Namibian Business Council.
Türkiye supported Namibia's independence struggle at the United Nations and formally established diplomatic relations with Namibia in 1997.
The two countries signed a Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement in 2014. A Joint Technical and Economic Commission was established, with its first meeting held in 2019.
The Turkish government provided food aid worth N$350 000 to Namibia during the 2024 drought.
Sudan
Sudan's new Ambassador, Osman Abu Fatima Adam Mohamed, said agriculture, mining and trade would be among the areas he intends to pursue with Namibia.
The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on political consultations and cooperation in Addis Ababa in February 2020. The areas identified included agriculture and tourism.
Agricultural cooperation includes the possibility of sharing experience in irrigation and agricultural production.
Philippines
Philippines Ambassador Myla Grace Ragenia C. Macahilig said her priority is to establish a formal mechanism for regular bilateral consultations with Namibia.
She said the Philippines would also focus on tourism, youth empowerment, education, technical and vocational training, food security and environmental sustainability.
"We've cited issues on tourism development. We look forward to opportunities to help out in terms of youth empowerment through education and perhaps some technical or vocational training that we can help with," she said.
Namibia and Philippines also have areas of cooperation involving health and the maritime sector.
Philippines has expertise in fisheries management, maritime transport, shipbuilding, ship repair and maritime education.
The two countries have also discussed cooperation in tourism, technical training, trade and investment.
Panama
Panama's Ambassador Rodrigo Guillermo Chiari Álvarez is returning to Namibia for a second term after first becoming involved in relations between the two countries about 14 years ago.
He identified agriculture and the maritime sector as areas he intends to pursue.
"We are looking at such areas as agriculture and the maritime sector and many others in which we could collaborate to enforce the economy of both our countries and strengthen that human relations that nations should have," he said.
Álvarez also spoke about the Panama Canal and called on Namibia to support its neutrality.
"We make a call to Namibia to adhere to the neutrality canal in order to make sure that this important waterway remains open for trade no matter what," he said.
Namibia and Panama have maintained diplomatic relations for more than a decade.
Panama's experience in logistics, maritime transport and services is linked to its position around the Panama Canal.
Mali
Mali's new Ambassador, Seydou Coulibaly, said he wants to strengthen political and economic relations with Namibia and revive cooperation under existing agreements.
"Mali and Namibia, we have a long history of relationships. Mali was among the countries that were in the forefront in supporting our liberation struggle," he said.
"There was a period of inaction, and therefore we have not moved to a stage where we will fully exploit the gains of these agreements," he said.
Namibia and Mali established diplomatic relations after independence.
The two countries subsequently held the inaugural session of the Namibia-Mali Joint Commission.
About seven agreements were signed in 2016, with additional agreements concluded in 2017, including an agreement exempting diplomatic and official passport holders from visa requirements.
Greece
Greece's new Ambassador, Efthalia Liana Kakiopoulou, said she would work to strengthen political, economic, trade, business and cultural relations with Namibia.
"I look forward to further strengthening the bonds of friendship and cooperation between our two beautiful countries," Kakiopoulou said.
Kakiopoulou also identified the blue economy, maritime affairs and tourism as areas for cooperation.
"We both have very beautiful countries. We are both maritime nations. So we have many fields to work together," she said.
Namibia and Greece established diplomatic relations in 1990.
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The two countries have agreements covering tourism promotion and education scholarships. Namibian military personnel have previously received scholarships from the Greek government.
Pakistan
Pakistan's new High Commissioner, Mohamed Amjad Aziz Qazi, has identified agriculture, ICT, disaster management, trade, commerce and investment as areas he intends to pursue with Namibia.
"We have, for example, identified agriculture, ICT, disaster management, so that both the countries could pool their, like, sort of expertise, and work towards a better and more productive relationship in these areas," Qazi said.
He said Namibia and Pakistan had also agreed to increase cooperation in trade, commerce and investment.
"We've also agreed that we should work more on enhancing our bilateral ties, particularly in the field of trade, commerce, and investment areas," he said.
Qazi said he would work to bring the private sectors of the two countries together.
"It would be my earnest effort to bring the business communities of the two countries together," he said.
He invited Namibian businesspeople to attend international exhibitions hosted in Pakistan, particularly exhibitions covering textiles, agro-industry, machinery and equipment.
Namibia and Pakistan established diplomatic relations after Namibia's independence in 1990.
The two countries have maintained diplomatic relations for 36 years, with Pakistan accredited to Namibia through its High Commission in Harare.
Namibians have received fully funded training in Pakistan, including diplomatic training in Islamabad.
The two countries have identified engineering, health, pharmaceuticals, and agro-processing as additional areas for cooperation.
Namibia and Pakistan have also held discussions on agricultural technology, ICT, infrastructure development and climate financing.
