Delayed Neeeb creates uncertainty – investment board

The seven-year-old new equitable economic empowerment bill (Neeeb) creates uncertainty, says Namibia’s investment board.

The Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB), which previously red-flagged the Neeeb, has said the length of time for the bill to be finalised has created ambiguity.

NIPDB spokesperson Catherine Shipushu told The Namibian last week this was one of two problematic areas they had highlighted.

“The protracted duration in the development of the draft bill has resulted in an atmosphere of uncertainty. We kindly urge the expeditious finalisation of the bill without further delay,” she said.

Shipushu added that another area of concern is ensuring the bill strikes a balance between promoting local empowerment and attracting investment. “It is essential to ensure that the revision of the law appropriately addresses both these imperative aspects,” she said.

To address this, the NIPDB has been involved in the reviewing process.

“We are confident that the policy decisions made during various working committee discussions and subsequently communicated to legal drafters for incorporation will, within reason, effectively address investor concerns,” Shipushu said.

In 2021, NIPDB head of investment Nangula Uaandja said they consulted the private sector to identify a list of constraints which need to be addressed.

“For instance, the government is saying the Neeeb is for people who want to do business with the government, but the way it is drafted says if you want to get a licence for economic activity you need to comply with the Neeeb,” she said.

The government would need to be specific on this, because in its current form it applies to all professions rather than those dealing with the country’s resources, she said.

The main pillars of the Neeeb are ownership, management control and employment equity, human resources and skills development, entrepreneurship development, corporate social responsibility and value addition, and technology and innovation. Executive director in the Office of the Prime Minister I-Ben Nashandi yesterday said the bill is currently with the justice ministry’s legal drafters and is set to reach the Cabinet after June.

The Neeeb, which seeks to promote the economic empowerment of previously disadvantaged Namibians, has been widely criticised for only targeting a particular segment of the population.

“Once the drafting is done, the bill is submitted to the Cabinet for clearance, and then a responsible member of Cabinet is authorised to table it in the National Assembly for consideration,” Nashandi said.

The justice ministry said the drafting is expected to be finalised by the middle of the year.

One of the most recent criticisms of the bill expressed in a report commissioned by the government and the World Bank asserted that Neeeb should be ditched, and that the procurement process should instead be used to address gaps in local content and ownership legislation.

The report further indicated that it could involve including certain requirements in bids or making local content part of bid evaluation criteria.

However, such local content requirements would need to be supported by suitable training and education programmes, as there is currently a skills shortage in Namibia’s green hydrogen value chain, noted the report.