Nangolo Mbumba, President of Namibia, spoke to DW during the Hamburg Sustainability Conference. In a wide-ranging interview, he discusses Namibia's relationship with Germany, and how the southern African nation can capitalize on its energy and mining boom.

 

DW: Your country is currently facing a devastating drought. Are you surprised by how devastating it has been in the region?

President Nangolo Mbumba: Yes, truly devastated. Usually, we have drought because lack of grains, lack of food. But this time, it is strongly indicating how parched, how dry the soil has become. The only way left was to make sure that we deliver water by trucks. That is the driest type of drought you can have when you can no longer deliver water to your people.

One of the responses to climate change has been developing green hydrogen projects, like the Hyphen Project you are developing in Namibia with Germany. How do you respond to critics who say the project creates new problems, including environmental ones?

We need to decarbonize the world. How? By using the available energies from the sun and wind. We have the highest rate of sun rays because we have a desert country. We have water. We have harbors and companies. I was talking to [German Chancellor Olaf Scholz], and he says [Germany is] committed to buy the green hydrogen or ammonia from us.

We are committed to this program. For the first time, our engineers and architects and technical people [are attending] German universities to learn how to handle those industries, we are proud of that. We are ahead of many other countries.

Germany is a partner, but the issue of reparations for the genocide that occurred in Namibia during colonial times. What do you want Germany to do now?

First, we have to talk to the Germans to agree that what was done was genocide. It took time, but now, on both sides, we agree that it is genocide that was done. Then, the issue of the apology, they never doubted that. They said they are ready to apologize.

How do you compensate for lives lost? Lives lost not only in the fighting but in the concentration camps? Not only in the concentration camps but also removing all their land and all their cows and other properties? But we think with goodwill, we can find a formula — not a perfect one, but at least a formula to indicate that the wrongs have been recognized and that atonement or reparation has been done.

It has to be done step by step so the community feels vindicated and their demands for reparations are met. We have agreed that the majority of the funds will be used to buy back some of the farms so people who lost the land will get their land back. Our constitution says you cannot take property from somebody who is registered in their name without compensation.

Then, we have certain institutions that need to be strengthened, specifically in central and southern Namibia, areas where these crimes were committed.

In some affected communities, Nama and Herero have complained of not being adequately consulted on this issue. Would you say that has been a failure on the government's part?

How do you negotiate anything? You can't have every Namibian coming to Germany to negotiate and every German person coming to Namibia to negotiate. You have to negotiate within the authority of a state. So, we have been talking to our traditional leaders. But in every community, democracy is democracy. You will always have different views. But that does not mean that we have not consulted them. Nothing is secret. We are ready to serve our people and the people from all our communities.

But, Your Excellency, would you say there could be a problem of a power imbalance when trying to negotiate with a wealthy nation like Germany that you also need as a development partner at the same time?

You know, that's a fair question. But we have indicated to our German friends right from the beginning that the issue of genocide has to be addressed on its own merit, and the institution that will be created to rectify what was lost will do those things.

Is that clear on the German part?

Very clear. I'm saying it now in Germany, where I am.  

Namibia recently tightened entry requirements for countries that require Namibians to have visas. Do you think the visa requirements from these Western nations are unfair?

Yes, we tightened it because they started some of these rules. Reciprocity is a very, very important rule. We cannot have our citizens as Namibians, even those with diplomatic and official passports, come here and be subjected to indignities.

So, we are not saying people should not come to Namibia. We are saying that since you treat our citizens that way, we will also demand (the same) from your citizens. When they come, we will give them visas in kind. We give you a visa on arrival — but you pay for it.

Let's talk about Namibia's mining and exploration boom. It seems that every week, a new mine is opened or an exploration license is granted. However, there are a number of mining and exploration interests that could have long-lasting impacts on Namibian communities. How can Namibians know for sure that their way of life can be improved and, at the very least, not disrupted by these new extractive activities conducted by foreign companies?

Mining should not be used as a scarecrow. Now that we have the minerals, other countries are saying, "Don't mine." What did they do in their own country? Which country prevented a country from mining its own resources?

So we have environmental regulations and rules that indicate there's a process to be followed before you start mining and a process to be followed when closing the mines. But if you have lithium this year, you have money. If you have gold this year, you have money. We just have a duty to make sure that these resources are used for the benefit of all Namibians — not some, not few, but all.

Edited by: Sertan Sanderson