By: Nghiinomenwa-vali Erastus
Last week the Walvis Bay Corridor Group pitched to Zambia to utilise the Walvis Bay Port for its fertiliser imports and others.
This is after the Zambian government indicated that it will procure 256 000 metric tons of fertiliser under the farmer input support program for the 2022/2023 farming season.
The Zambia Business Development Manager for the Walvis Bay Corridor Group (WBCG), James Kapos, indicated that the port of Walvis Bay is among the most efficient port in Africa.
The port maintains high safety and security standards with shorter turnaround times between Zambia and Namibia, said Kaposa.
He shared this point with the ministry of agriculture officials during a meeting they held recently to discuss the benefits of procuring fertilisers destined for southern and western Zambia via the port of Walvis Bay.
The Zambian government announced that it had awarded a tender to private companies to procure 256 000 metric tons of fertiliser under the farmer input support program for the 2022/2023 farming season.
As a result, the WBCG would like to collaborate with the Zambian government agencies to ensure that goods are procured at the right price and delivered within a reasonable time frame.
The Corridor explained that it believes that the Zambian government will save some money because the landed cost for the commodity will be lower because the transportation distance will be shorter.
Consequently, the shorter distance from Walvis Bay Port would translate into the fertiliser cost per ton being relatively lower.
“Due to the port of Walvis Bay’s geographical proximity to the aforementioned Zambian regions, it should automatically translate into lower transportation costs for the commodity due to shorter land lag,” the Corridor Group explained.
Adding that transport cost is a major factor in the final consumer price at which the commodity may be offloaded to the framers in those parts of the country.
“Due to its proximity, it will be a good strategic initiative for the ministry to align procurements of goods meant for all the districts in southern and western regions via the port of Walvis Bay, pitched Kaposa.
Therefore, the Corridor Group is inviting the Zambian government and its procuring agents of fertilisers to consider importing fertilisers meant for the aforementioned regions via the Namibian port.
As delivery times will be shorter and prices will be lower compared to the same commodities arriving via ports that are further away from the districts in the southern and western provinces,”
The WBCG has indicated that it is committed to assisting and supporting the Zambian business community, “so we call on the business community to contact our office in Lusaka to explore viable solutions via the port of Walvis Bay”.
From 12 – 16 September 2022, the WBCG conducted a corridor assessment on the Walvis Bay-Ndola-Lubumbashi Development Corridor (WBNLDC) and also participated in the Zambia, DRC, Namibia technical working group meeting on the enhancement of Road transport and trade facilitation at Kasumbalesa border post.
As part of the assessment, the WBCG met with relevant border officials and stakeholders to discuss various issues affecting the smooth flow of trade in order to enhance trade facilitation along this Corridor. Email: erastus@thevillager.com.na
