WBCG Promotes the Walvis Bay Corridors in Finland

A delegation led by the Walvis Bay Corridor Group embarked upon a business visit to the industrial hub of Finland, namely Helsinki during a one week visit. The delegation comprised of 9 members who included representatives from TransNamib, Namport, Namibia Freight Services, Trade Ocean Shipping Namibia, Woker Freight Services, Roads Authority and the Walvis Bay Corridor Group. The purpose of the visit was to create awareness about Walvis Bay, Namibia as an alternative trade route for imports and exports between Finland and southern Africa; to attract Finnish operators in transport and logistics to create partnerships with Namibian transport and logistics companies; to attract Finnish exporting companies to establish Walvis Bay, Namibia as a distribution hub for southern Africa; to seek technical support and establish cooperation in developing the transport and logistics sector in Namibian in growing Namibia as a gateway to the southern African market; to seek support, expertise and knowledge in all the three modes of transport such as port, rail and road; and the familiarisation on the construction, development and operations of the transport sector in Finland. The one week programme included information sessions which were hosted by the Finnish Embassy in Helsinki which included presentations which were conducted by Namport and the Walvis Bay Corridor Group to potential business partners in the transport industry. Company visits and individual meetings following the information sessions were also embarked upon, focusing on key areas such as business development and transport facilitation. Individual meetings included one on one meetings with transport stakeholders such as Nurminen Logistics, Cargotec Finland, Logy, Wartsila, Proxio, Konecranes and Rambol who expressed their interest in utilizing the Walvis Bay Corridors via the Port of Walvis Bay as an alternative trade route. Company visits entailed sharing knowledge and experiences in logistics projects between the Walvis Bay Corridor Group and companies such as the Port of Turku, Vuosaari Harbour and the Road Hauliers Association, amongst others. According the CEO of the WBCG, Johny Smith, “We therefore need to continually promote the Walvis Bay Corridors as the preferred trade route in southern Africa and beyond. The development of the Walvis Bay Corridors would ensure economic development in Namibia and the region as we continually try to find ways as how to reduce the cost of doing business in the region. One of the major challenges lying ahead includes the building of capacity in the transport and logistics industry to sustain the growth of the port and the corridors in the short, medium and long term.” The main commodities that are currently being exported from southern Africa to Finland are fresh and dried fruits, wine, paper production, mineral products and poultry products; and from Finland to southern Africa are telecommunication equipment, paper products, board products, machinery, timber and wood processing, mining and metallurgical equipments and household goods. Namibia’s role as a gateway to the rest of the SADC role has become more prominent and has created more interest from the regional as well as the international market and with more direct shipping calls to Walvis Bay, high efficiencies, short transit times and strategic partnerships, the Walvis Bay Corridor routes are now in a robust position to serve the SADC market to the rest of the world.

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