Staff Writer
The Buy Local Grow Namibia campaign, in collaboration with the Franco Namibian Cultural Centre (FNCC) and the Local Merchant Market, will host its first ‘Buy Local Grow Namibia Fair’ on 24 September 2022 at the FNCC in Windhoek.
The Fair will provide a platform to highlight the abundance of variety and quality in the local Namibian market.
The Buy Local Grow Namibia Fair will be a vibrant, family-oriented event encouraging the public to buy local, support Namibian entrepreneurs and appreciate the country’s rich culture.
The Fair will showcase a day market with vendors from industries spanning health, food, cosmetics, technology, arts, fashion and home decor, amongst others, displaying their locally produced goods and services.
There will also be a variety of local food and drinks, as well as entertainment with live musical performances, children’s games and an exclusive showcase of local films to round off the day.
Trade minister Lucia Iipumbu, and Sen Pang, Resident Coordinator for the UN System in Namibia, will open the Buy Local Grow Namibia Fair, joining counterparts from the Diplomatic and Business community in visiting the various stalls offering proud Namibian products.
The Films to be screened stem from a project from August this year, namely ‘Kino Namibia Film Festival 2022’, a film hub project under the umbrella of the Namibia Film Commission in partnership with the UNDP Accelerator Lab Namibia. Following the success of KinoNamibia2022, thirteen local films were developed in 48 hours.
At least six of these films themed around seven (7) of the seventeen (17) Agenda 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be screened in the evening during the Buy Local Grow Namibia Fair.
The seven (7) selected goals are Poverty, Health, Quality Education, Gender Equality, Innovation, Climate Change and Governance.
Kino Namibia is a youth film project started in 2017 which aims to develop film production skills and create a networking platform for young upcoming like-minded creatives. A total of 46 short films have been made so far.
Since its launch in October 2020, ‘Buy Local, Grow Namibia’ has been a multi-stakeholder campaign organising various activities to create awareness around the need to support Namibia’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic by making use of local products and services. Now well within the implementation of our Buy Local, Grow Namibia Phase II activities, we are also making a concerted effort to reach, collaborate with and empower the creative sector as one of the industries hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated lockdowns.
The partners view Buy Local Grow Namibia as a long-term avenue to address the many job losses, pay cuts and business closures experienced as a socio-economic consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic.
They believe consistent investment in our local goods and services is the most significant way toward achieving economic self-sufficiency in Namibia. The following partners lead the campaign.
They are united in their vision to promote the Ministry of Trade’s Growth at Home strategy and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and find innovative solutions to achieve Vision 2030.
The partners are UN Namibia, Namibia Trade Forum, Team Namibia, The Namibian Newspaper and O&L BrandX. In particular, the Buy Local Grow Namibia campaign aims to address and promote the following SDGs SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 2 (Zero hunger), SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production). About the Sustainable Development Goals: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the blueprint for achieving a better and more sustainable future for all.
They address the global challenges we face, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice. The 17 Goals are interconnected, and to leave no one behind, we must achieve them by 2030. The Buy Local Grow Namibia Fair will be open from 10:00 to 18:00 and is accessible to the public
