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Capturing more economic value from critical minerals is emerging as a priority for Namibia, with Germany committing N$103million to projects supporting sustainable raw material value chains and expanded access to modern energy. The agreement, signed following bilateral negotiations in 2025, will advance two energy transition and industrialisation projects aimed at supporting Namibia’s green development ambitions.
German Ambassador Thomas Wimmer and National Planning Commission Director General Kaire Mbuende recently signed the agreement. The critical minerals initiative will focus on developing sustainable raw material value chains, with an emphasis on increasing local value addition, improving transparency and expanding economic opportunities as global demand for minerals used in the energy transition grows.
“The projects will support Namibia’s efforts to expand access to modern and sustainable energy services and to develop responsible and sustainable value chains for critical raw materials, contributing to the country’s energy transition and green industrialisation objectives,” a joint media release said. The initiative aligns with the broader opportunity to derive greater domestic economic benefits from its mineral resources as international competition for critical raw materials intensifies. Developing local value chains could help strengthen industrial capacity and widen the economic contribution of the resources sector.
The agreement builds on Germany’s existing development cooperation with Namibia, which has included support for electricity transmission infrastructure and the expansion and rehabilitation of the Ruacana hydropower plant. Germany currently supports more than 50 development cooperation projects in Namibia through KfW Development Bank, the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) and the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR). The latest projects extend that partnership into critical raw materials, linking resource development with energy access and Namibia’s wider green industrialisation objectives.
