Staff Reporter
NAMIBIA’S Vice-President, Dr Nangolo Mbumba, has urged the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) member states to redouble efforts and unite in the fight towards post-Covid-19 economic recovery.
“The pandemic has, for the last two years, disrupted our efforts towards economic recovery, and that of other SACU member states, resulting in depletion of SACU revenues since its existence,” the Vice-President stated at a courtesy visit to the SACU headquarters in Windhoek recently.
According to the Vice-President, SACU is a key strategic partner in working towards post-Covid-19 recovery, which requires “a committed focus on economic transformation, competitiveness, collaboration and diversification”.
SACU VISIT: Vice-President Dr Nangolo Mbumba visits SACU headquarters. Photo: Office of the Vice-President 
SACU VISIT: Vice-President Dr Nangolo Mbumba visits SACU headquarters. Photo: Office of the Vice-President 
SACU VISIT: Vice-President Dr Nangolo Mbumba visits SACU headquarters. Photo: Office of the Vice-President
Dr Mbumba further emphasised the need to prioritise regional integration efforts as a strategy for tackling development challenges. He stated that such efforts are of paramount significance in these times of global economic instability, framed by fragile world economic recovery and outlook.
“We prioritize regional integration efforts, as a credible strategy for tackling our development challenges. It is an ideal platform for promoting large scale investment and economic efficiency required for economic growth and employment creation,” he stated.
The Vice-President also urged the SACU Secretariat to work closely with all member states to ensure that SACU’s trade policies are entrenched and streamlined with national policies with a clear strategy that promotes coherence across all sectors to maximise benefits for the country.
