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Namibian leader stresses anti-poverty role of industrialization

Xinhua, August 1, 2016 Adjust font size:

Africa should vigorously pursue the industrialization agenda because it was the only sure way of breaking the cycle of poverty on the continent, according to Namibian President Hage Geingob.

"Industrialization will enable us to expand our productive capacities which will in turn enable us to make maximum use of our natural resources so that we are able to create employment opportunities for our people. This will enable us to deal with the cycle of poverty in our region," said the president when he officially opened on Saturday Zambia's premier agriculture and commercial event, the 90th Agricultural and Commercial Show, in Lusaka, the country's capital.

While appreciating the winds of economic development taking place on the continent, the Namibian leader said the continent still faces deficits in social development which could only be unraveled through pursuing industrialization.

He said the rapid economic development taking place on the continent has not resulted in reduced poverty levels, adding that there was need to focus on improving food security and job creation by accelerating industrialization programs.

According to him, industrial development should be at the core of regional development and that this should hold the key diversification of economies.

Regional integration has the capacity to benefit countries because the countries will benefit from economies of scale and become more competitive in the global trading system and that it was high time countries moved away from exporting raw materials to value addition, he added.

He said the holding of events where firms exhibit their products provides a perfect platform for promoting economic integration.

The Namibian leader emphasized the need for African governments to work with the private sector in advancing economic growth as well as to embrace the small and medium enterprises as engine of economic growth.