Welcome to PLUS online

Foreign currency regulations

Companies like fish factories dealing with foreign currency will now have to revert to Namibian currency during a shorter time period than before the central bank announced. Currently, an exporter is allowed a period of 6 months from the date of shipment before repatriating the export proceeds to Namibia and another 6 months to keep such foreign currency invested in a Customer Foreign Currency (CFC) account with a Namibian authorised dealer before selling these proceeds to an authorised dealer in Namibia.

The Bank of Namibia regards this time lapse as too liberal and has decided to reduce the period for the mandatory repatriation of export proceeds to Namibia from 6 to 3 months from the date of shipment. A regulation to this effect was issued by on 8 July 2004. The retention period of foreign currency in the Customer Foreign Currency (CFC) account at a commercial bank in Namibia has likewise been reduced from 180 days to 90 days, the BoN announced.

Fishing

competition in Katima Mulilo

From 20 to 29 August there will be various fishing competitions taking place near Katima Mulilo in the Caprivi Region. The venue will be the Kalambeza Fishing Camp. Teams from South Africa and Zambia are also competing. Enquiries can be made at Strjis Coertzen at Fax 066-252238.

Black empowerment is coming

Earlier this year the Namibian Cabinet has decided to draft a black economic empowerment (BEE) policy to be completed before the end of this year. The task is to be performed by the Office of the Prime Minister. While the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung is organising a business breakfast for August 7 to discuss BEE in Namibia, Standard Bank in South Africa announced a few days ago, it would give 10 percent of its stake to various black empowerment companies. In a further step to accelerate BEE, the South African Department of Minerals and Energy has reached an agreement that all new mining projects where the mineral rights, which were previously state-owned must have a 51 percent BEE shareholding within a one-year transitional period. A stake of 26 percent must go to BEE shareholding if the mineral rights were formerly privately held. This was reported by Mbendi, an organisation which monitors trade and business in Africa.

Foreign investors to Namibian financial markets

To support the diversification of the Namibian economy, foreign owned Namibian companies are permitted greater access to domestic credit in financing foreign direct investment into Namibia. With immediate effect, foreign owned Namibian companies may borrow locally up to 200 percent of the total shareholders’ investment, the Bank of Namibia (BoN) announced this week. Investment by foreign firms into the Namibian economy is likely to lead to the diversification of the economy, access to technology, increased competition, and better services and products.

This dispensation does not apply to emigrants and may not be used by non-residents to acquire properties or to engage in portfolio investments, security lending and hedging. In these cases, the 100 percent ratio still applies.

Australians discover metal in Erongo

Reefton Mining of Australia, which previously announced the discovery of substantial tantalite finds in the Erongo Region, last week said the metal

occurs over a 50 kilometre length of the Sandamap-Erongo pegmatite belt.

Tantalite (Ta205) or tantalum is used in mobile phones, computers and other electrical equipment. The market for tantalum has been steadily increasing with prices moving towards US$40 per kilo compared with US$20 in the last 12 months according to recent analyses. Now Reefton’s base metals division is actively seeking a joint venture partner to assist with resources to commercialise the deposit as soon as possible to take advantage of the tantalum price increase.

Zambia and Namibia

A three-day meeting was held by high level delegations of Zambian and Namibian officials in Windhoek. The joint technical commission discussed bilateral issues like electricity and water supply, tourism and value addition to copper. The recent opening of the Sesheke road bridge across the Zambezi River would increase trade and movement of goods to and from landlocked Zambia to Walvis Bay, acting foreign minister Dr Nickey Iyambo told Mr Davidson Mulela, deputy foreign minister of Zambia.

Institutional investors may with immediate effect seek approval from the Bank of Namibia to make foreign currency transfers outside the common monetary area of up to 15 percent of total assets of long-term insurers and pension funds and 15 percent of total assets under management by unit trust management companies. The earlier limitation of allowing only 10 percent of the previous year’s net inflow of funds to be transferred annually is hereby done away with.

The Bank of Namibia continues to monitor the developments in the market of institutional investors to ensure and encourage a sound financial system that will be to the benefit of the nation at large.