President Hage Geingob met with Finland’s President, Sauli Niinistö at State House on Thursday, where they discussed business ventures between the two countries and explored key areas of bilateral co-operation.
Niinistö is in Namibia on a three-day state visit.
The two Heads of State explored key areas such as agriculture, education, health and energy, particularly, green hydrogen.
Geingob said he is looking forward to Friday’s business meeting and he hopes the investment and business opportunities Namibia has to offer, such as renewable energy and digitalisation, will entice Niinistö and his delegation.
“Your presence here today is not only proof of the warm relations that exist between our two countries, but also of the desire of our two countries to further strengthen and enhance our relations for the economic and social benefit of our countries,” he said.
Niinistö informed Geingob that he came with a business delegation who is interested in green hydrogen and wave energy, adding that they are keen to meet with their Namibian counterparts.
“We have a company that is interested in wave energy. I don’t know if you have been studying that sector, but to my understanding, wave energy here in Namibia might be a very fruitful source of energy,” said Niinistö.
He further stated that mining is a sector in which Finland has a lot of experience, specifically in machinery, and he is sure there is ongoing co-operation between the two countries in this regard.
The Finnish president noted that his country has recently signed a memorandum of agreement with the European Union to help provide fiscal raw materials to Namibia.
Meanwhile Minister of Mines and Energy, Tom Alweendo, said when it comes to energy such as electricity, Namibia continues to makes use of imports.
In that regard, he emphasised that new oil discoveries that have been made will change the country’s socio-economic landscape greatly.
“Equally, in this area, Finland could be interested as a co-investor,” said Alweendo.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency