Team Namibia and stakeholders address retail challenges

Team Namibia recently attended a Retail Charter Council meeting held at the offices of the industrialisation and trade ministry upon invitation of the Namibia Trade Forum. The meeting was attended by trade minister Lucia Iipumbu and representatives from the retail industry, including Woermann & Brock, Spar, Shoprite, Dinapama and Woolworths.

Topics of discussion included current challenges faced in the retail environment, the ease of doing business, and what could be done to support the growth of local retailers.

Team Namibia chairperson Sidney Hanstein highlighted different instruments available to both government and the private sector which could be used to work together in a team format to achieve better results. He noted that Team Namibia’s interaction with numerous entities entails how they all make individual statements towards improving the domestic economy through patriotic efforts, local growth, consumption, national pride and the standardisation of exports.

Hanstein said there is little to no synergy between these efforts, and he therefore feels the role of Team Namibia is to draw all these efforts together. “Team Namibia, being on a variety of committees, could play such a critical role to bring these focused efforts together to achieve better results as a cohesive team,” he added.

Iipumbu concurred that a deliberate effort needs to be made to combine initiatives for better outcomes. The minister pointed out that different role players are competitors, but are willing to work together for the good of the country. Moreover, the entire country should combine efforts to grow the local economy. As such, Iipumbu motivated all stakeholders to increase efforts to diversify local production.

This would be in support of the Namibian Retail Sector Charter which was signed off in March 2016 as a voluntary tool to help transform the retail sector from one that relies predominantly on imports to one that gives preference to local manufacturers by promoting the sourcing of local products. The Namibia Retail Sector Charter outlines principles and targets to facilitate greater access to the retail market for local beneficiaries. The charter further seeks to facilitate the creation of a suitable climate for local contributions to the value chain and aids in job creation, amongst other growth targets.