Fifteen entrepreneurs of the small and medium (SME) business sector in Grootfontein participated in a workshop jointly organized by the town’s municipality and local consultancy firm, SMEs Compete. The workshop on "Selling, Customer Care and Shop Display" presented by one of the directors of SMEs Compete, Collin Gaochab, attracted small firms from catering, retailing, coffin manufacturing, garment production, light engineering, gas distribution and de-bushing services. The deputy mayor of Grootfontein, Paulus Angula, officially opened the workshop. "Grootfontein is the gateway to the Caprivi and is an ideal overnight stop for people travelling to the eastern part of Namibia’", said the municipal official responsible for facilitating the workshop, Rudolf Ugelvi, adding "It is important to capitalize on the strategic location of the town and to incorporate small firms in local economic activity".

It was the first time for most participants to benefit from such a business capacity building activity. They learnt new skills and tactics related to selling, customer care and shop display. Participants indicated that they and others in the town should not be marginalized. They called on SMEs Compete to run more training programmes in the town as a way to assist aspiring entrepreneurs enter business, singling out the highly acclaimed "So you want to be in business?" workshop recently developed and launched by the consultancy firm. SMEs Compete Namibia works closely with government ministries like Trade and Industry and business support organizations including the NCCI and JCC, to compliment support, advice and guidance provided to Namibia’s SME, a sector identified as a driver of economic growth.

The Namibian Rangeland Forum is a group of rangeland scientists and practitioners that get together on an annual basis to share ideas and knowledge on relevant rangeland related issues in Namibia. This year’s forum will take place in Windhoek under the theme "Rangeland Management on Resettlement Farms – a challenge to Namibia?" Since livestock production on rangeland is the major agricultural activity on most of the resettlement farms in Namibia, this theme will contribute towards the pool of knowledge and experience on appropriate rangeland management as a pre-requisite for the sustainable settlement of people.

De Beers Chairperson Nickey Oppenheimer jetted into Namibia for a blitz visit on Monday and he also briefed President Hifikepunye Pohamba on several issues. Oppenheimer would not give details to local media, but said the long-drawn out negotiators for a renewed sales agreement between De Beers and the Namibian government would end soon. The Government and De Beers are both 50% partners in Namdeb since 1994. Every 5 years the diamond sales agreement must be reviewed. The last contract agreement ended in December 2005. Meanwhile De Beers will relocate its selling arm Diamdel operations from South Africa to Israel, but this move will apparently not affect diamond trade nor the proposed relocation of the De Beers Diamond Trading Centre (DTC) from London to Botswana. Diamdel is DTC’s sales arm operating from South Africa and London. The decision to relocate the Diamdel central processing operations (CPO) to Ramat Gan in Israel follows a strategic assessment of the means by which the company can better meet the diverse needs of its global customer base of over 500 non-DTC clients. From January 2007, Diamdel intends sorting, valuing and preparing rough stones for export in Israel.
In February this year, De Beers Managing Director, Gareth Penny confirmed the group’s intention to aggregate diamond production from all its international operations in Gaborone, Botswana from the end of 2009.