RedForce to collect N$48m for TransNamib

Transnamib acting chief finance executive Monde Inambao-Samwele says RedForce Debt Management has been appointed to collect N$48 million owed to the national railway company.

This follows criticism that the state-owned railway operator allegedly hand-picked RedForce to collect up to N$100 million in arrears, bypassing open tender procedures.

Industry players claim the 12-month contract, effective from 1 April, should have been subjected to open bidding due to its value exceeding the public procurement threshold. Instead, it was awarded via a request-for-proposal process.

Inambao-Samwele dismisses the allegations as “misleading and false”.

“The debtors’ book handed over is approximately N$48 million. The cost of collection will be borne by the defaulters as a penalty – not by TransNamib,” she said in a media statement this week.

She insisted that the contract was awarded fairly and transparently.

“There is documented evidence that RedForce met the technical and financial evaluation criteria and was found to be the most advantageous bidder,” she said, adding that the process followed procurement regulations.

RedForce will be responsible for recovering debts older than 60 days from clients and tenants.

“This engagement is a strategic financial initiative aimed at strengthening revenue collection and improving our financial position,” Inambao-Samwele said.

TransNamib has faced ongoing financial woes. In 2022, the government wrote off N$410 million in debt, and last year the company secured a N$2.6 billion loan from the Development Bank of Namibia and the Development Bank of Southern Africa for new locomotives and wagons.

RedForce chief executive Julius Nyamazana has also defended the company’s appointment, saying: “We were awarded the contract through a transparent, legally compliant process. Our proposal met all the necessary requirements and was evaluated on merit, experience and our proven ability to recover debt.”