In partnership with the Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) Namibia, the NIPDB hosted an “Invest in Namibia Summit” on the margins of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, United States.

Building on the significant interest Namibia attracted on account of recent oil and gas discoveries and green hydrogen projects that have placed Namibia on the radar of investors, the summit was needed to amplify Namibia as a preferred investment destination and attract investment into other sectors of the economy, such as green hydrogen, agriculture, tourism and mining, in addition to further investment in oil and gas. RMB’s partnership was therefore invaluable to foster awareness of Namibian opportunities to the international community towards increased investment interest.

In collaboration with the World Economic Forum (WEF), NIPDB is developing the Namibia Sustainable Supplier Database (SD2). This database comprises an online, centralised repository of information about domestic companies that aims to support domestic and international investors to identify potential suppliers, service providers, or business partners in Namibia.

This initiative is expected to create a triple benefit as follows:

• For domestic companies, it will provide a promotional tool that helps to showcase your expertise and products to potential new customers;
• For investors, it will help to easily assess the availability, quality, and reliability of domestic suppliers, understand local market dynamics, and supply chain risks – all key elements to an investment decision; and
• For the NIPDB, it will serve as a tool to position the strengths of the domestic business community in promoting Namibia as an attractive investment location where sustainable sourcing opportunities exist.

The Know2Grow (K2G) High Potential Pool is designed to assist in expanding the activities of export-ready micro and small businesses with significant potential for exporting their products. In 2023, Nedbank Namibia, First National Bank Namibia and Bank Windhoek made a generous pledge of N$300,000 to support the High Potential Pool.

More than 20 export-ready MSMEs from the K2G-High Potential Pool have participated. They were selected to take part in international events focusing on market access and export promotion, including the Annual Investment Meeting held in Abu Dhabi in May 2023, the 3rd China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo, and the Southern Africa International Trade Expo (SAITEX) as part of Africa’s Big 7 exhibition held in Johannesburg in May and June 2023, respectively.