New governance structure for NIPBD

Articles of association amended
The board of directors will be composed of at least seven independent non-executive members, one of whom will be appointed by the President to serve as the chairperson.
STAFF REPORTER
  • 2 Months Ago
The Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB) will transition to a new governance structure that is fully aligned to the principles of the Public Enterprises Governance Act 1 of 2016 (PEGA).

To effect this change, the articles of association were amended, in terms of which the transition will be made, bringing about several changes, the NIPDB said in a statement yesterday.

Primarily, the board of directors will be composed of at least seven independent non-executive members, one of whom will be appointed by the President to serve as the chairperson.

The NIPDB CEO, to be appointed by the President, will be invited by the board to attend meetings in an ex-officio capacity.

Furthermore, a representative from the ministry of industrialisation and trade, not below the rank of deputy executive director, will be invited by the board to attend meetings in an ex-officio capacity.



Reporting line

Functionally, the NIPDB CEO will report to the board of directors, with an additional reporting mandate to the President in her/his capacity as the chairperson of a technical investment committee.

This committee will be composed of members representing various offices, ministries and agencies (OMAs) and will be responsible for driving government service delivery with the aim of improving Namibia’s Ease of Doing Business and Competitiveness through infrastructure and policy, as well as fast-tracking the conversion of investments, among other goals.



Legislation

In order to give effect to the aforementioned resolution, the amended articles of association will be registered, and the process of appointing the new board of directors will commence with immediate effect.

The mandate and legitimacy of the NIPDB are further set to be legislated by Parliament in the Namibia Investment Promotion and Facilitation Bill, which is currently in the drafting process. It is important to note that these two processes are not mutually exclusive.



Background

The (NIPDB) was established following a proclamation by late president Hage Geingob when he announced his second-term government on 16 March 2020.

This proclamation was supported by a resolution of the cabinet, which further positioned the NIPDB as an entity in the Office of the President.

The NIPDB effectively assumed the functions of the Namibia Investment Centre and the SME division from the then ministry of industrialisation, trade and SME development, which was later renamed to the ministry of industrialisation and trade.

At the NIPDB’s Annual General Meeting held last November, the minister in the presidency, Christine //Hoebes, indicated that, following the completion of its initial 24-month operationalisation strategy, the NIPDB has effectively outgrown its infancy stage.

The minister further directed the advisory board to review the governance structure, determine whether it is still fit for purpose, and make the necessary recommendations to President Nangolo Mbumba.