Finland says it wants to strengthen its economic ties with Namibia built on closer cooperation in the technology, renewable energy and mining sectors.
Finnish Ambassador to Namibia, Leena Viljanen, says Finland’s expertise and technology align well with Namibia’s development priorities, creating significant opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation.
“Finland’s key priority, and the main focus of the embassy’s work is to promote and expand commercial and economic relations with Namibia. Additionally, we emphasise higher education cooperation, active NGO involvement and engagement at all levels of society through reciprocal visits,” Viljanen said.
She outlined three primary areas of interest for Finnish private sector engagement, all aligned with Namibia’s green transition goals.
“The Finnish private sector has substantial interest in three key areas. While there are many others, I will focus on these three, all of which are linked to Namibia’s pursuit of a green transition. First, the energy sector, specifically renewable energy such as solar, wind, water, bioenergy and biofuels,” she said.
Viljanen also pointed to Finland’s contributions to the mining sector and further highlighted the importance of value chain development and critical raw materials, in line with the European Union-Namibia strategic partnership.
“In addition to the traditional machinery and technology, this also includes sustainable solutions for the mines, water and energy supply, for example, value chain development and critical raw materials—that is also part of the EU and Namibia strategic partnership, as Ambassador Berke has mentioned,” she said.
The Ambassador also highlighted the circular economy, where Finland is considered a global leader as the nation is currently engaged in projects related to recycling, waste management and biofuel production.
“Currently we are working in particular on solutions for recycling and waste management and production of biofuels and energy from waste,” she explained.
She also emphasised the role of education in advancing cooperation between the two nations.
“Then there’s education. Education is relevant, I could say, across the starting sector for all of the areas I just mentioned. Finnish higher education sector institutions have had long-term collaboration for decades with their Namibian counterparts,” she stated.
According to Viljanen, Finnish institutions are now concentrating on providing specialised expertise to support Namibia’s development agenda.
She said Finland is actively supporting Namibia’s civil society through grants aimed at development projects.
“I just want to mention one more important area of cooperation. Finland supports Namibia’s civil society through grants for the civil society organisations development projects,” Viljanen said.
She emphasised that this form of support not only strengthens bilateral relations but also fosters mutual understanding and growth.
