By:Nghiinomenwa-vali Erastus
Namibiaimported goods worth N$4,4 billion from Africa during May 2023, out of the total N$12.1 billion the country had spent on imports.
This is according to the May 2023 trade statistics issued by the Namibia Statistics Agency.
Since most of Namibia’s trade is concentrated within SACU with South Africa accounting for 33.6%, the NSA data shows that the country’s monthly imports within Africa came from Cote d’Ivoire, amounting to N$98.2 million.
The import basket from Cote d’Ivoire consisted mainly of petroleum oils, the same products the country imports from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and others.
Namibia exported goods to a value of N$358,9 million during the period 2015 to 2022 to Cote d’Ivoire, while on the demand side, imported goods amounted to N$267.4 million over the same period.
Whereas, on the supply side, the country supplied Africa with goods worth N$4.7 billion during the month under review- mostly to Botswana and South Africa.
Botswana appeared in first position as Namibia’s main export destination accounting for 18.9% of exports, South Africa came second with a share of 17.9%, and Zambia in third position at 7.2%.
African countries have agreed to remove certain tariffs and non-tariff barriers to increase trade among themselves in the continent gradually through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The AfCFTA is one of the flagship projects of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want.
It is a high-ambition trade agreement, with a comprehensive scope that includes critical areas of Africa’s economy, such as digital trade and investment protection, amongst other areas.
The specific objective of the AfCFTA is to progressively eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers to trade in goods and liberalise trade in services; cooperate on investment, intellectual property rights, and competition policy.
In May 2023, SACU took the first position as the largest source of imports for Namibia, contributing 34.2% and supplied Namibia mainly with motor vehicles for the transportation of goods, alcoholic beverages, and ‘sugars, molasses, and honey’.
Namibia imported ‘sugars, molasses and honey’ valued at N$124.9 million which was mostly sourced from South Africa.
Over the entire period (May 2022 to May 2023), the value of sugars, molasses and honey imported averaged N$141,5 million with the largest value of N$313,9 million recorded in August 2022 and the lowest value of N$44,1 million recorded in June 2022.
On the supply side, during May 2023, Namibia exported sugars, molasses, and honey valued at N$9,8 million of which N$9,7 million was re-exports and was mostly destined for Zimbabwe, whereas N$0.1 million worth of sugars, molasses and honey was domestic exports and was destined to Angola.
The BRICS grouping – Brazil, Russia, China, India and South Africa – came in second position with a share of 21.9% of all goods imported providing the country mostly with petroleum oils, motor vehicles for the transportation of goods and thermionic cathode valves and tubes.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries and the European Union ranked in third and fourth position accounting for 14.9% and 6.5% of total imports, respectively.
OECD supplied Namibia mostly with ‘copper ores and concentrates’, petroleum oils and rubber tyres while the EU supplied Namibia mainly with ores and concentrates of base metals, civil engineering and contractor’s equipment, and wheat and meslin. Email: erastus@thevillager.com.na
Nam Imported N$4,4 Billion Worth Of Goods Within Africa In May
