The N.dollars 20 million Green Charcoal Namibia factory currently under construction in Arandis in the Erongo Region, is expected to create employment for 60 locals to ensure value addition to the product.
Incorporated and registered in 2021 as a PTY, the Belgium-owned company whose operations have already commenced plans to employ 25 extra people once construction is fully completed, by 2023.
While speaking at a ground-breaking ceremony of the factory at Arandis on Friday, one of the directors of Green Charcoal Namibia Cedric Schmidt said the factory will be able to process and package over 30 000 tonnes of Forest Stewardship Council approved charcoal per year as an additional 8000 briquettes from its by-products.
“The company strives to maintain a high level of supplier satisfaction that is in line with the company in Belgium, which is the biggest market so far.
Green Charcoal Namibia is currently working closely with about 30 farmers across the country to produce charcoal for the factory,” Schmidt noted.
He said some of the main reasons why the company is investing in Namibia, is because the country is one of the most politically stable countries in Africa with impressive road infrastructures.
Deputy Minister of Urban and Rural Development Natalia /Goagoses at the same event, applauded the Belgium-owned company for investing in the town, stating that this is a step in the right direction leading the town into the preferred logistics hub.
“Our economy has been challenged for several years now due to several factors and we have been trying to do more with less. Local authorities, therefore, need to complement the economic development of partners such as Green Charcoal Namibia.
We need to help the government to grow the industries that will make an economic impact,” she noted.
Arandis Mayor Erastus Kandenge echoed the deputy minister’s sentiments, noting that not only does it fulfil the council’s mandate to boost the local economy but it creates much-needed employment for the locals.
“The unemployment rate is very high across the globe, a situation worsened by Covid-19, therefore, we must express our gratitude when a vision becomes a reality and new industries, as well as jobs, are created,” Kandenge noted.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
