Renthia Kaimbi
The Namibian Ports Authority (Namport) celebrated its partners and clients on Saturday during the Annual Port Users and Stakeholders Dinner in Walvis Bay under the theme “Collaborate to Elevate”.
The event recognised top-performing companies and small businesses for their contributions to port operations and growth. In the revenue-based category, awards went to Woker Freight Services (Pty) Ltd, Logistics Support Services (Pty) Ltd, Sturrock Grindrod Maritime (Pty) Ltd, Trade Ocean Shipping (Pty) Ltd, and Mediterranean Shipping Co. Namibia.
For volume-based performance, Walvis Bay Salt Refiners (Pty) Ltd, Puma Energy Namibia (Pty) Ltd, Woker Freight Services (Pty) Ltd, Walvis Bay Cargo Terminal (Pty) Ltd, and Walvis Bay Bulk Terminal (Pty) Ltd were honoured. SME partners Comfortune Investments CC, Zephyr Investments CC, and XYZ Logistics CC also received recognition.
Namport chief executive officer Andrew Kanime said the authority’s role is to ensure sufficient port capacity and high efficiency at reasonable costs.
“That is on the one side, in order to ensure that we don’t become a bottleneck to the economy because we are a critical enabler for the economy,” said Kanime.
He said Namport depends on its partners and employees to achieve its goals while maintaining the ability to reinvest in infrastructure and operations.
“For us to provide that capacity and efficiency level, we depend on our partners, we depend on our people, but we also need to plough back into the community that has actually given us the licence to operate,” he said.
Walvis Bay Port Users Association chairperson Kallie Grünschloss commended Namport for its continued investment in infrastructure and people. “This annual dinner is always a highlight for us every year. This is the time of the year that we can actually pause, and we can look back and say: Where have we been, where are we, and where are we going to?” he said.
Grünschloss said business has been successfully redirected from ports in Dar es Salaam and Durban to Walvis Bay but warned that Angola is becoming a competitor, with some clients already moving operations to Luanda.
“But, we must always remember, we cannot rest on our laurels… Our future now, the awareness has been done, is operational excellence and efficiency that’s going to drive us,” he said.
The evening ended with performances by Dr Victor and The Rasta Rebels and violinist Ronald Kandume.
