New Delhi [India], March 14 (ANI/SRV): The India Africa Trade Council organized the India Namibia Summit which was attended by the Business community in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
The President of the Indian Economic Trade Organization, Dr Asif Iqbal, welcomed the High Commissioner of Namibia, HE Gabriel Sinimbo, to India and pledged the commitment of support between the two nations for a robust partnership.
There is a huge interest in India for Namibian Diamonds, a country with great scope for bilateral trading opportunities in Skill Development, Affordable Housing, Agriculture, Minerals, and Gold.
The event was attended by various diplomats, industrialists, and businessmen from Telangana. Dr Tasneem Shariff, Trade Commissioner who was presented her appointment by His Excellency Gabriel Sinimbo, spoke about accelerating India's relationship with the Southern African region and its port proximity Walvis Bay for the various other nations around the region. There were various business delegations recently from South Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
"As the trade office bridge between India and Namibia, I will explore all strategic opportunities between the two countries. I am thankful to the Indian High Commissioner in Namibia Shri, Prashant Agrawal IFS, for giving the virtual address to all our business houses in Telangana. This creates a sense of confidence and credibility for our trade mechanisms. I will work on requesting the cheetahs and other wild cats from Namibia to be brought to the Hyderabad Zoo and work on the Diamond Park project that can enable students to learn Diamond trade and other related self-reliant skill sets. Very soon our students will go to Namibia to learn the intrinsic details of the diamond sector," said Dr Tasneem Shariff who will be driving the India Namibia trade relations in the state.
His Excellency Gabriel Sinimbo said global trade relations were essential and it was gratifying to see the development of trade relations between India and Namibia also appealed Telangana businessmen to invest in Namibia. He said the role of the Indian IT sector from the state was essential for economic development.
"As a President of the organization, my goal is to build bilateral relations reach new heights between India and Namibia and our delegation a few months back saw tremendous interest from the Indian side. Next delegation from Telangana will go in the month of May 2022" said Dr Asif Iqbal who is looking to connect the companies for business in Namibia. Indian delegation will explore opportunities in areas of contractual farming, poultry industry, meat processing, diamond trade, and agricultural collaborations and also identify other opportunities for building up a robust infrastructure needs of the country in the field of setting up gold refinery.
"There is a renewed interest on the event of 75th Anniversary. Our bilateral trade has grown immensely with Namibia, especially after the pandemic, and is a very good sign. The real volume of trade is much higher than official figures because a lot of trade through South Africa. A strong business delegation visited Namibia just a few months ago and the High Commission is always ready to help and support the Telangana business delegation" said the High Commissioner of India in Namibia, His Excellency Shri Prashant Agrawal, IFS.
The High Commissioner also inaugurated the office of the India Namibia Trade Forum(INTF) with all other dignitaries and expressed interest in supporting the various MOUs signed during the event in Hyderabad.
The High Commissioner also expressed great interest in supporting the trade relations between the two countries and invited the trade community to explore all the available choices for investors.
Trade between the two countries stood at approximately USD 80 million. Namibia's main imports from India were drugs and pharmaceuticals, chemicals, agricultural machinery, automobile and automobile parts, glass and glassware, plastic and linoleum products. India primarily imported nonferrous metals, ores, and metal scraps. Indian products are also exported to neighbouring South Africa and re-imported to Namibia as South African imports. Namibian diamonds are often exported to European diamond markets before being again imported to India. In 2009, the first direct sale of Namibian diamonds to India took place.
In 2008, two Indian companies won a USD105 million contract from NamPower to lay a high-voltage direct current bi-polar line from KatimaMulilo to Otjiwarongo. Namibia is a beneficiary of the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) program for telecommunications professionals from developing countries. Namibia has the richest known marine diamond deposits in the world, estimated at more than 80 million carats. They represent around 65 per cent of Namdeb Holdings' total diamond production and 90 per cent of its diamond resources.
Hyderabad will form a network of businessmen and will be taking delegations to the country to strengthen mechanisms created for enabling these trade opportunities between both countries.
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