Namibia and EU reset for the long game

Namibia and the European Union have agreed to extend their strategic partnership through to 2030, renewing a cooperation framework that has guided joint investment in green hydrogen, critical raw materials and enabling infrastructure since 2023.The renewal was announced at the second Namibia-EU Business Forum, which concluded in Windhoek on 13 May 2026. Alexandre Baron, the EU Head of Cooperation, presented a stocktake of progress made under the original 2023–2025 roadmap and set out priorities for the next phase.The partnership, anchored in a memorandum of understanding signed at COP27 in November 2022, covers six pillars: value chain integration and business facilitation, environmental, social and governance co-operation, mobilisation of funding and enabling infrastructure, capacity building and skills development, research and innovation, and regulatory alignment.Investment and project pipelineOn the investment front, a pipeline of green hydrogen projects has been assembled for Team Europe financing, including HyIron, Hyphen, Zhero, Cleanergy and Daures. A parallel pipeline of critical raw materials projects covers Andrada and Northern Graphite, among others.The ministry of industries, mines and energy completed a pre-feasibility study on critical raw materials beneficiation, while geological survey work worth €1.8 million (N$34.9 million) has been mobilised through the PanAfGeo+ programme in partnership with German geological institute BGR. The European Investment Bank has separately commissioned a €2 million (N$38.8 million) study into the lithium value chain.Business networking under the roadmap has included two business forums, participation in the Africa Green Hydrogen Summit, the Africa Green Investment Summit and a business mission to the Rotterdam Green Hydrogen Summit.On trade and market incentives, the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism became operational in early 2026, while the EU Hydrogen mechanism is described as imminent and the second H2 Global auction is currently under way.Funding and infrastructureThe SDG Namibia One Fund, supported by contributions from the EU and the Netherlands, has committed a total of USD 43.9 million to projects, with USD 11.9 million already deployed to Hyphen, HyIron and Zhero.Masterplans for the development of Walvis Bay and Lüderitz ports have been completed, with additional studies ongoing and potential partnerships being explored between NamPort, the Port of Açu in Brazil and the Port of Rotterdam.A €3.5 million (N$67.9 million) EU GET.Transform programme is under way with the Ministry of Mines and Energy on energy planning, and the EU Global Green Bond Initiative was launched in April 2026. A new programme to prepare Lüderitz Town Council for anticipated growth has also been launched.However, a €500 million (N$9.7 billion) framework loan facility from the European Investment Bank has yet to be rolled out and remains an outstanding action for the new phase.Skills and trainingThe Namibia Green Hydrogen Programme, funded by a €8.85 million (N$171.8 million) donor package drawing on contributions from the EU (€1.25 million / N$24.3 million), the Netherlands (€3 million / N$58.2 million) and Germany (€4.6 million / N$89.3 million), is described as spearheading sector development. A national task force is leading the development of a Skills Development Strategy and Plan.A new Team Europe technical and vocational education and training programme, drawing on partnerships with the Namibia Training Authority and a €2 million (N$38.8 million) IGNITE GH2 grant, is under way. A further intervention described as opportunity-driven vocational training is being prepared for a 2027 launch.Outstanding actions include securing the long-term institutional sustainability of the Namibia Green Hydrogen Programme and increasing Namibian uptake of Erasmus+ mobility and capacity-building opportunities.Research and regulationA 2024 case study through the AfricaMaVal programme examined Namibia's critical raw materials value chains, covering investment opportunities, financing regulations and governance. The Horizon GreenPeg project, which targeted buried pegmatite deposits of the kind found in Namibia, has been completed, while the Horizon Undercover project is exploring deep exploration technology.On regulation, work on a National Policy on Green Hydrogen and Derivatives began in June 2024, with the proposed bill and accompanying regulations expected to be completed by the end of 2026. Analyses of the fiscal regime governing the green hydrogen sector are ongoing in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance, while the Namibia Green Hydrogen Association has launched complementary work to support those efforts. Support for the development of a national critical raw materials strategy is set to begin in June 2026.The enactment of relevant legislation, including a mining act and a synthetic fuels act, remains outstanding.OutlookBaron said the roadmap offered a transformative opportunity to combine sustainable development, climate action, industrialisation and energy security, while cautioning that success would depend on inclusive partnerships, local value creation, infrastructure investment, skills development and long-term policy certainty.He said the partnership had the potential to become a global model for equitable green industrial cooperation between Africa and Europe.

Namibia and EU reset for the long game

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Namibian Sun 2026-05-15

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Namibia and EU reset for the long game

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Namibian Sun 2026-05-15

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