Namibia needs a vaccine production plant to lower the cost of importing vaccines for animals.
Currently, the government spends more than N.dollars 100 million annually on vaccination campaigns for Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) in the northern communal areas, Director of Planning and Business and Development in the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, Mesag Mulunga revealed last week.
In an interview with Nampa on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) that took place in Davos, Switzerland, Mulunga said the government spends N.dollars 100 million 104 million on importing vaccines for animals.
He, therefore, called on international investors to grab the investment opportunity in the country’s agricultural sector, noting that a vaccine production plant in Namibia would help fill the gap and potentially lower vaccine costs for farmers and livestock producers.
Namibia currently imports FMD vaccines from Botswana.
Mulunga said he is not discouraging regional synergies within the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) or the sister countries, but if one looks at the cost of livestock production, such vaccines are not cheap.
“It will be cheaper if we produce them locally and also distribute them to other countries in the region. When you produce locally, you are in a much better position to control costs and to also improve the business case for your business sector,” he said.
Mulunga further said investors have already shown interest in such an investment opportunity.
The WEF meeting took place from 22 to 26 May in Davos, Switzerland, under the theme ‘History at a Turning Point: Government Policies and Business Strategies.’
Showcasing the country’s green hydrogen potential topped Namibia’s agenda at the WEF, and other key sectors were specifically identified for investment promotion at the forum. These included infrastructure, transport and logistics, tourism; agriculture; and oil and gas.
Several high-level events took place to showcase the sectors to potential investors.
These included positioning the country as a strategic logistics hub serving as a gateway to the Southern African Development Community and unveiling several large infrastructural projects to both domestic and foreign investors.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
