The Namibian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) has once again appealed to government to remove the visa requirement for South African citizens travelling to Namibia on business in its current form.
Tarah Shaanika, CEO of the NCCI, said that the new requirement – which has been in effect since March this year – had already proven to have had “significant negative impact” on cross-border business activities between the two countries.
"It is unfortunate that this decision is enforced at a time when the Southern African Development Community (SADC) is making progress in deepening regional economic integration, which should result in increased intra-regional trade and commercial activities. For the Namibian government, which has been a strong proponent of deeper regional economic integration, to enforce such a decision is not only surprising but deeply disappointing," said Shaanika.
"We strongly propose that South African citizens be allowed to get such visas at entry points, as is the case with Namibian citizens travelling to South Africa for business," he said.
He pointed out that South Africa was Namibia's largest trading partner. "So many businesses in Namibia, which play a pivotal role in this economy, are subsidiaries of or have strong commercial relationships with South African companies which require representation of such companies on the boards of some Namibian companies. For someone to be required to apply for and acquire a visa in advance for a board meeting in Namibia that lasts for two hours is incomprehensible, especially when Namibians are not treated the same by the South African government," commented Shaanika.
According to him, the NCCI “has formally taken up the issue with the Namibian Government without any interest to have it resolved on the part of the government”.
