Putin, NNN discuss expanding trade, economic ties

MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin and Namibian President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah have pledged to deepen economic cooperation, with trade, investment and technology identified as key areas for expanding relations between the two countries.

The two leaders met at the Kremlin last week, after the Third Russia-Africa Summit, to discuss bilateral relations and ways to make their partnership more practical. Putin said trade and economic cooperation were developing positively but acknowledged that the current volume of trade remained modest.

Putin said relations between Russia and Namibia were developing positively but acknowledged that the volume of trade between the two countries remained modest.

“Our trade and economic partnerships are growing, but unfortunately, in absolute volume, the figures are quite modest. We have something that we can and have to work on,” Putin said.

The meeting followed the Third Russia-Africa Summit, which brought together African leaders and Russian officials in Moscow.

Putin said one of the key tasks was to diversify economic relations, identifying minerals, agriculture, fisheries and information and communication technology (ICT) as priority sectors.

“Russia has good solutions in these areas that we can share with you and use them in our contacts,” he said.

The Russian president said the two countries should use their Intergovernmental Commission to advance cooperation in specific areas.

“I think it would be right to make the Intergovernmental Commission support certain areas of our activities. And I believe this will bring tangible, practical results,” Putin said.

Putin also highlighted cooperation in education and culture, saying Russia had operated a Cultural and Educational Centre in Namibia since 2018 and an Open Education Centre for the Russian language since 2024.

He thanked Nandi-Ndaitwah for supporting the centres, saying they provided a foundation for further development of relations.

The two leaders’ discussions come as Namibia seeks to expand economic cooperation with Russia in sectors that include agriculture, energy, technology, and mineral processing.

In an interview in Moscow, Nandi-Ndaitwah said Namibia’s relationship with Russia was built on longstanding political support during the liberation struggle.

She said the relationship should now be strengthened through trade and investment.

“The main purpose of this summit is really to build in that longstanding foundation, which is more political, for us now to move into economic, with particular reference to trade and investment,” she said.

Nandi-Ndaitwah said Namibia wanted foreign investors to establish partnerships with local businesses and ensure that Namibians participated in management and decision-making.

“When you are coming to invest, we are talking about joint ventures,” she said.

The President said skills transfer was important to ensure that Namibians could take over responsibilities in companies and move into other sectors of the economy.

She said Namibia’s economic priorities included agriculture, energy, technology, science and mathematics.

Nandi-Ndaitwah said agriculture required scientific knowledge, including an understanding of soil, seeds and fertilisers.

She also said energy was necessary for industrialisation, particularly in a country that produces minerals but seeks to process more of them locally.

“Value addition, you can only do it in industries,” she said.

President Nandi-Ndaitwah said Namibia needed energy to support industrial development and technology to strengthen its economy.

Putin said Russia was ready to share its expertise in the sectors identified by the two countries.

He said the Intergovernmental Commission could help ensure that cooperation produced practical results.

The meeting also addressed existing cooperation in education and culture, with Putin referring to the Russian language centres operating in Namibia.

Nandi-Ndaitwah said the Russia-Africa Summit was important for building economic relations between Russia and African countries.

She said African countries needed to industrialise and ensure that their people benefited from their natural resources.

The meeting between the two presidents was held after Nandi-Ndaitwah participated in the Third Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow.

Economic talks… President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah talks to Russian president Vladimir Putin.

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