Placido Hilukilwa
ILLEGAL immigration, drug trafficking, and other cross-border crimes are some of the issues under the spotlight at a Namibia-Angola bilateral meeting currently underway at Lubango, the capital city of the southern Huila province of Angola.
The Namibian delegation is headed by Frans Kpofi, [former] home affairs minister who on Wednesday was promoted to head the defense and veterans’ affairs ministry, replacing Peter Vilho who resigned recently.
The Angolan Ministry of home affairs issued a press release saying that both countries’ experts would meet for two days – Wednesday and Thursday – to discuss “issues of common interest” related to immigration, security, and public order, culminating Friday with the signing of “various juridical instruments” by Kapofi and his Angolan counterpart, Eugenio Cesar Laborinho.
During the three days of work, senior officials of the two countries are addressing issues related to the common border, illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and other related crimes as well as the strengthening of cooperation in the fields of security and immigration.
Kapofi’s delegation includes the Inspector-General of the Namibian police, Lieutenant General Sebastian Ndeitunga, and other senior officials of the home affairs ministry.
The Lubango indaba takes place at a time when cross-border crime between the two countries is surging, ranging from illegal immigration; vehicle theft, and the smuggling of goods such as the cheaper Angolan fuel, cigarettes, and liquor.
The border between the two countries is closed since March last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands of Angolans have crossed into Namibia illegally in recent times fleeing a severe drought affecting their villages in the southern areas of Angola.
