The Ministry of Works and Transport has confirmed that it is discussing strategic and technical cooperation with Ethiopian Airlines as it aims to restart a national airline.
The government’s statement on Wednesday comes after media reports on the consultations, which raised concerns about foreign control over the national airline.
“The government is committed to exploring various forms of technical and strategic cooperation, while ensuring that Namibian expertise and national interests remain central to any future arrangement,” ministry executive spokesperson Jonas Sheelongo says.
He says discussions with Namibian aviation operators and with Ethiopian Airlines have been analytical and technical and that no binding commitments have been made with any party.
“The primary purpose of these consultations is to ensure that the mistakes of the past, which ultimately led to the financial collapse and closure of Air Namibia, are avoided at all costs in the establishment and operation of the new national airline,” he says.
The ministry also distanced itself on Wednesday from a circulating internal document reporting on outcomes of the August engagement with Ethiopian Airlines.
In the memo, Sheelongo tells minister Veikko Nekundi that the parties agreed to explore a management contract with Ethiopian Airlines and that it estimates a national Namibian airline will make losses for at least five years.
“The ministry wishes to unequivocally distance itself from the document currently circulating in the public domain. The ministry does not recognise this document as an official, authorised or accurate reflection of its work, deliberations or positions,” Sheelongo says in Wednesday’s media statement.
He says information in the internal memo should not be presented as factual or official.
“The ministry calls on the media and all commentators to exercise greater responsibility, verify facts before publication and refrain from disseminating material that has no official standing,” he says.
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