President Hage Geingob says Namibia is pushing to establish stronger bilateral relations with Finland for closer cooperation to boost trade and investment relations between the two economies.
“I am informed that Finland’s Africa Strategy aims to diversify and deepen Finland’s relations with African countries, with a focus on political and economic relations. While our political relations are impeccable, it is Namibia’s wish to strengthen our trade and investment relations,” he said during Finnish President Sauli Niinistö’s state visit to Namibia on Thursday.
Geingob said Namibia’s relations with Finland date back to the 1800s and he desires for the two countries to further strengthen and enhance relations for the economic and social benefit of the people.
“We appreciate the bilateral cooperation we have established, especially in the field of higher education, arts and culture, scholarship programmes and student exchanges, early childhood development, civil aviation to mention but a few. I believe that much more can be done for our bilateral relations to grow and it is my wish that Your Excellency’s visit will add impetus to this,” he said.
This comes when the objective of the Africa Strategy has been set to double trade between Finland and African countries from 2020 to 2030 and to increase investment in both directions.
In this regard, Geingob said he is “looking forward to tomorrow’s business meeting. It is my hope that the many investment and business opportunities Namibia has to offer, especially in the area of renewable energy, connectivity and digitalisation and blue/green economy, will entice you and your delegation.”
The Namibian President expressed that he looks forward to ensuring official talks, which he is confident will result in fruitful outcomes and the strengthening of bilateral relations between the two nations.
“At the time when our world faces several challenges and threats, never has the imperative for global cooperation been greater. In this vein, continuous defending of multilateralism is more important than ever, especially given the lessons of Covid-19 pandemic on how it has affected our livelihoods and our interactions with one another.
An effective rules-based multilateralism system is our insurance policy against existential threats such as wars, nuclear proliferation, pandemics and climate change. It is of utmost importance that diplomacy and dialogue remain essential tools in resolving global security challenges,” he said.
