Major developments for Walvis Bay: transport improvements across borders in the region are having a major impact on the development plans for this Namibian port. Roger Murray reports.(Namibia)

THE INNOVATIVE PROMOTION of regional transport corridors to expand trade with member states of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) through Namibia's Atlantic coast port of Walvis Bay has entered a new stage with the launching by the Walvis Bay Corridor Group (WBCG) of a strategic desk for project and business development. This is headed by Frank Gschwender, a founding senior executive with WBCG, and this has been accompanied by the appointment of Johnny Smith, previously responsible for sales and service with Namibian Ports Authority (Namport), as WBCG business development executive. They are spearheading a shift of emphasis from a mainly promotional focus to a more interventionist and cross-organisational role for WBCG in identifying new business opportunities and lead-managing necessary infrastructure investments. Fourteen key interventions have been identified to expand usage of Walvis Bay--for instance, enhancing rail heads as efficient transfer cargo points--with a three-step approach adopted for Corridor projects. These comprise establishing a common agenda for participating agencies and companies, contracting pre-feasibility studies and securing feasibility funding.

In another boost, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has selected the Trans-Caprivi Corridor (TCC), which links Walvis Bay via the Trans-Caprivi Highway (TCH) and the Nam-Zam road bridge across the Zambezi river between Katima Mulio and Sesheke, as an African modal corridor, one of three pilot transit transport corridors (the others are in Asia and South America). UNCTAD is expected to play a leading role in coordinating funding by …