Namibia gives Norway cold shoulder

Namibia will not take part in the Nordic-African Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Oslo from 19 to 20 November, the international relations ministry has confirmed. “Minister Selma Ashipala-Musavyi will not be attending the meeting. Namibia is not participating this year,” Ministry of International Relations and Trade chief foreign relations officer Rosalia Uushona has said. No further explanation has been given on Namibia seeking assistance from Norway to provide technical support on oil and gas. President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah confirmed in her State of the Nation Address in April that, at her request, the Norwegian government had agreed to provide Namibia with technical support. The president said Norwegian officials who were part of the team that drafted Namibia’s Petroleum Act of 1992 visited the country for a week in March, and are in contact with the oil unit.

The Nordic-African Foreign Ministers’ Meeting brings together government representatives, business leaders and multilateral development institutions from Africa and the Nordic countries. It focuses on trade and investment opportunities and economic cooperation through discussions, networking and bilateral meetings. Retired diplomat Pius Dunaiski says not participating sends a message to Norway. “If you are invited to a conference of this level and you don’t turn up, you are sending a diplomatic signal to that country that you are not happy,” he says. Dunaiski says Namibia stands to lose by not sending a delegation. He says the country needs all the support it can get internationally to succeed in the oil and gas sector. ‘WE CAN ONLY BENEFIT’ “It’s a very unfortunate thing, because Norway, when it comes to this resource curse, is the most beautiful example, a paragon of ethics. So we should try to do something…