Bipa counters governor's no-office criticism

The Business and Intellectual Property Authority (Bipa) has rejected claims by Kavango East governor Hamunyera Hambyuka that the region has no local office, saying it established a physical presence in Rundu this month to improve access to business registration services.

The authority said Bipa officials have been stationed in both Rundu and Katima Mulilo since 1 July, dismissing suggestions that entrepreneurs in the two regions lack direct access to its services.

The clarification comes after Hambyuka, speaking publicly last week, cited the absence of a Bipa office in Rundu as one of the region's major development constraints. The governor said the lack of a local office was causing lengthy delays in business registration, with applications taking weeks or even months to be processed.

He identified the establishment of a Bipa office as one of the region's priority interventions for the 2026/27 financial year.

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Responding to questions from Namibian Sun, Bipa's acting executive for marketing and corporate communication, Romancia Nyandoro, said the authority had already established a regional presence before the governor's remarks.

"We established a presence in both Rundu and Katima Mulilo on 1 July in response to the growing demand for Bipa services in the two regions," she said.

Nyandoro explained that Bipa officials are currently operating from the regional offices of the industries, mines and energy ministry, where they assist clients with the authority's services.

"We have Bipa staff physically present in the regional offices in Rundu and Katima Mulilo," she said.

She added that before the deployment of Bipa personnel, "applications were submitted through the regional ministry offices, which facilitated the receipt and dispatch of documents to Bipa".

Looking ahead, she said the authority is developing an online business registry aimed at modernising company registration and reducing processing times.