Nam trade forum holds first session

THE inaugural meeting of the Namibia National Trade Forum (NTF) was held at a local hotel in Windhoek yesterday, ahead of the sixth ministerial World Trade Organisation conference to be held in Hong Kong, China, where trade ministers hope to find common ground on trade liberalisation.

Yesterday’s meeting saw the Ministry of Trade and Industry give an update on the ongoing trade negotiations, and a presentation on the draft rules and procedures. Deliberations from yesterday’s meeting would form part of the country’s draft position paper, which the Namibian delegation would take to the WTO talks scheduled for next week.The NTF concept was approved by Cabinet in August this year as a mechanism for consultation and co-operation between the private sector and the Government, without regulatory or policy-making powers.The forum’s main responsibility is to discuss trade issues, especially trade negotiations, market access, trade measures and regulations, revision of trade agreements and product and market development.Speaking at the meeting, Trade and Industry Minister Immanuel Ngatjizeko said it was the forum’s duty to be pro-active in guiding how Namibia interacts with trading partners around the world; with emphasis on how best to advance and protect the country’s interest in trade deals.”As a small economy, our duty is to understand the rules of trade, take the advantage globalisation has to offer and safeguard our national interest as a nation and collectively as part of the regional, continental and multilateral groupings,” said Ngatjizeko.During the meeting, Trade and Industry Permanent Secretary Andrew Ndishishi gave a wide-ranging presentation which included an update on the ongoing trade negotiations – one of which, the Sacu-EFTA (European Free Trade Area) agreement, is expected to be signed at the WTO conference in Hong Kong.He gave a presentation on Namibia and the WTO.Ndishishi also talked about the Sacu-Mercosur Preferential Trade Agreement, whose final round of negotiations is scheduled for early next year; and the Sacu-USA Free Trade Agreement, whose next round of consultations is on early next year and is expected to be concluded by end of 2006.Ndishishi said it was also the duty of the NTF to make the public, especially exporters and importers, aware of the trade agreements and their rules and regulations.The national trade forum is a globally accepted mechanism between the private and public sectors, and is necessary for a joint effort towards the realisation of the national aspirations and objectives.The forum’s membership is composed of the main economic stakeholders and it would have 24 members, selected from both the public and private sectors.Representatives from the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Indigenous Business Forum, Namibia Manufacturers’ Association, Namdeb, the National Planning Commission and various ministries were among those who attended the inaugural meeting.Deliberations from yesterday’s meeting would form part of the country’s draft position paper, which the Namibian delegation would take to the WTO talks scheduled for next week.The NTF concept was approved by Cabinet in August this year as a mechanism for consultation and co-operation between the private sector and the Government, without regulatory or policy-making powers.The forum’s main responsibility is to discuss trade issues, especially trade negotiations, market access, trade measures and regulations, revision of trade agreements and product and market development.Speaking at the meeting, Trade and Industry Minister Immanuel Ngatjizeko said it was the forum’s duty to be pro-active in guiding how Namibia interacts with trading partners around the world; with emphasis on how best to advance and protect the country’s interest in trade deals.”As a small economy, our duty is to understand the rules of trade, take the advantage globalisation has to offer and safeguard our national interest as a nation and collectively as part of the regional, continental and multilateral groupings,” said Ngatjizeko. During the meeting, Trade and Industry Permanent Secretary Andrew Ndishishi gave a wide-ranging presentation which included an update on the ongoing trade negotiations – one of which, the Sacu-EFTA (European Free Trade Area) agreement, is expected to be signed at the WTO conference in Hong Kong.He gave a presentation on Namibia and the WTO.Ndishishi also talked about the Sacu-Mercosur Preferential Trade Agreement, whose final round of negotiations is scheduled for early next year; and the Sacu-USA Free Trade Agreement, whose next round of consultations is on early next year and is expected to be concluded by end of 2006. Ndishishi said it was also the duty of the NTF to make the public, especially exporters and importers, aware of the trade agreements and their rules and regulations.The national trade forum is a globally accepted mechanism between the private and public sectors, and is necessary for a joint effort towards the realisation of the national aspirations and objectives.The forum’s membership is composed of the main economic stakeholders and it would have 24 members, selected from both the public and private sectors.Representatives from the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Indigenous Business Forum, Namibia Manufacturers’ Association, Namdeb, the National Planning Commission and various ministries were among those who attended the inaugural meeting.