The Walvis Bay Corridor Group will pay its own unique contribution to commemorate World AIDS Day held each year on 1 December. Ten trucks will drive down Independence Avenue. The Walvis Bay Corridor Group is a consortium of public/private transport stakeholders. It facilitates trade and transport to and from markets such as Europe, the Americas, and the land-locked SADC region through the port of Walvis Bay. The corridor serves as the emerging trade route on the West Coast of Southern Africa. A HIV/AIDS Help Desk was launched in February 2003 to serve the members in the transport sector within the Walvis Bay Corridor Group. The Walvis Bay Corridor Group HIV/AIDS Help Desk currently represents 10 member companies in the transport sector, namely: Namibian Ports Authority, TransNamib Holdings Ltd, F.P. du Toit Transport (PTY) Ltd, Dresselhaus Transport and Scrap, Etosha Transport, Unitrans Namibia (PTY) Ltd, H&H Furniture Removals CC, Kühne & Nagel (PTY) Ltd, Wesbank Transport, Transworld Cargo (PTY) Ltd. Trucks line up at the TransNamib building and end at Ausspannplatz.

Bank Charges Too High

The Institute for Public Policy Research has put together a comprehensive and up-to-date list of retail bank charges in Namibia. It has found that price information is neither easy to obtain nor straightforward to interpret and compare. As a result, Namibian consumers of banking services are likely
to find the choice of which bank to use a bewildering one. In addition, Namibian banks are becoming steadily more dependent on this complex range of charges as a source of revenue. At the same time, there is clear evidence that the profitability of Namibia’s banking sector is high, around 24 %, much higher than in South Africa and other neighbouring countries. Policy-makers are therefore faced with the problem of whether to assist the consumer by increasing competition in the sector or regulating prices. Both approaches have their drawbacks but progress must be made if the wider objective of increasing access to banking services for the estimated 47.5% of Namibians presently without access is to be achieved.

The lucrative exports of beef and mutton to EU countries have received a dent on Wednesday when the ministry of agriculture announced an immediate stop to EU export certification. A team of veterinarians of the EU food and vet officials currently visiting Namibia to evaluate health controls. The experts found that some procedures did not fully comply with EU directives. Until shortcomings are addressed, the Namibian director of veterinary services has halted the certification process for meat exports. The EU team concludes its inspection visit on Friday.