Namibia: Geingob leads SME team to USA
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Hage Geingob, has led a small team of Namibian SMEs and youth leaders on a trade and investment mission to the US.
First the Minister and delegation attended the US-Africa Business Summit organised by the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) in Washington DC from October 4 to 7.
The CCA is a US-based business association and holds this forum on an annual basis.
During the forum Geingob participated in a panel discussion on Intellectual Property Rights and Indigenous Knowledge for Foreign Direct Investment.
On the margins of the summit Geingob held successful meetings with a number of business companies in Washington DC and the nearby State of Delaware and invited them to the Namibia International Investment Conference slated for the end of November.
The companies operate in business areas like solar energy, cold storage facilities, port management, coastal surveillance and marketing and promotion.
Geingob and his delegation also had a meeting with Senator Chris Coons of Delaware. Senator Coons is the Chair of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs in the US Senate.
The meeting discussed issues around the AGOA preference scheme, Namibia's efforts to export agricultural and other manufactured products to the US and possible future cooperation between the State of Delaware and Namibia on areas like fresh produce exports to the US and cooperation between the Port of Wilmington and Walvis Bay.
Geingob then went on a trade and investment promotion mission to Los Angeles, California.
The Minister and his delegation held a meeting with the mayor of Beverly Hills and discussed possible cooperation between that city and Namibia.
During the visit to Los Angeles Geingob was awarded with a Scroll of Appreciation for his role in promoting trade and investment between California and Namibia by the Board of Supervisors of the County of Los Angeles.
The County of Los Angeles is the largest and most influential county in the state of California, representing more than 80 cities including the city of Los Angeles.
He also met with Senator Curren Price Jr of the California Legislature and discussed trade matters with him. Senator Price is the Chair of the International Trade Committee for the Council of State Governments in western USA. At this occasion Geingob was also awarded with a Certificate of Recognition for promoting international trade relations between Namibia and California.
During his stay in Los Angeles, which ended on Friday, Geingob met business leaders, training institutions, healthcare facilities and experts in technology.
He was accompanied by the Namibian Ambassador to the US, Martin Andjaba, officials from the Ministry of Trade and Industry, youth leaders and Namibian SME business people.