2009-09-04

Swedish mining delegation to Namibia

A Swedish MeetingPoints Mining delegation is visiting Namibia on September 7 – 11. The purpose of MeetingPoints Mining is to stimulate sustainable partnerships between the Swedish mining sector and its counterparts in countries in southern Africa. The delegation will meet the Ministry of Mines and Energy, the directorates of Mines and Geological Survey, the National Planning Commission, the Chamber of Mines, miners unions and the industry.

The purpose of the MeetingPoints Mining Programme is to stimulate sustainable partnerships between Swedish private enterprises, public authorities, universities and other organisations in the mining sector and their counterparts in selected countries active in mining. The initiative is lead by the Geological Survey of Sweden (SGU) in collaboration with Sida (the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency) and Swedish mining.

"We are immensely proud to work with Namibia. Minerals and metals are fundamental for society on a global level. The MeetingPoints Mining initiative has the potential of a true win-win-win situation where the combined experiences of Swedish and Namibian mining can make an important contribution to sustainable economic growth and social development in our countries ", says Johan Anderberg, Deputy Director General of the Geological Survey of Sweden.

"This project is important because it will help to develop the concept of partner driven cooperation and build on Sweden's good relations with Namibia, where the traditional Swedish development cooperation is now being phased out. The project is growth orientated and supports Sida's primary mission to help to fight poverty," adds Ola Nilsmo of Sida.

Challenges in common

Many of the challenges which the mining sector faces in securing a sustainable development of mineral resources in Namibia and Sweden are the same in both countries - developments in technology, products and services, care of the environment, safety & health issues, human resources and skills development, interaction with society and local communities, economic diversification, efficiency in governance, taxation and regulations, to name a few. The delegation’s visit to Namibia is a first effort to learn more about Namibian experiences in mining, to introduce Swedish mining and to start building links at all levels in the mutual interest of both countries.

“Like Sweden, Namibia has had a long history of mining, and indeed, mining is the backbone of the Namibian economy. The two countries can therefore learn from each other. Of particular interest for the Namibian side is the fact that Sweden also has a tradition of adding value to her minerals, an issue that the Namibian government is currently addressing, as the Namibian minerals are mostly leaving the country in an unprocessed form, thereby depriving the country of the opportunities presented by value adding. ”, says Dr. Gabi Schneider, Director of the Geological Survey of Namibia.

The delegation programme includes meetings with the Ministry of Mines and Energy and directorates of Mines and Geological Survey, the National Planning Commission, the Chamber of Mines, miners unions and the industry. A formal presentation on the MeetingPoints initiative will be given at the Ministry on Monday the 7th and a lunch seminar on Partnership in the mining sector will be held on Friday the 11th at the House of Sweden, hosted by the Swedish Trade Council in Namibia.

For more information, please contact:
Erika Ingvald, SGU, Communications and Press Officer, +46 18 17 93 50, erika.ingvald@sgu.se
Dr Gabi Schneider, Geolgical Survey of Namibia, +264-61-2848242, gschneider@mme.gov.na

On the web:
MeetingPoints Mining
Geological Survey of Namibia