Mutorwa meets TransNamib board

A long overdue meeting between transport minister John Mutorwa and the TransNamib board and CEO took place last Thursday to discuss a raft of issues, including alleged non-cooperation and disruptive behaviour by board member Dantagos Jimmy-Melani. Mutorwa said after much toing and froing, a date was set for the meeting, with the condition that Jimmy-Melani must be present.He has also called for the meeting after the TransNamib board had attempted to arrange a get-together with finance minister Calle Schlettwein to discuss an exemption for a tender. Neither Mutorwa nor TransNamib board chairperson Paul Smit would say what tender the exemption was for.John Kwedhi, the general-secretary of the Namibian Transport and Allied Workers Union (Natau), alleged that the TransNamib board has failed to meet over the last four months due to the stalemate over Jimmy-Melani. This could not be confirmed. Mutorwa had months ago instructed the board to reinstate Jimmy-Melani because it has no right to suspend another board member. PrioritiesDuring the open session of last week's meeting, Smit said the most important priority for the board is to support the new CEO, Johny Smith, and his team to get the parastatal's strategic and business plan approved by cabinet. “Without an approved plan no board or CEO will be in a position to get TransNamib on the success track, in order to start the journey,” Smit said.He said the integrated strategic business plan has been debated, amended and approved at various offices for almost two-and-a-half years, and expressed the hope that cabinet will approve the plan as soon as possible, so the implementation thereof can start.This plan involves four core principles - the streamlining of the company to become efficient, effective and internationally competitive. Smit said it also involves permission from cabinet to allow TransNamib to use its assets as collateral and to sell non-core properties to finance most of what is needed to restructure and upgrade the rail carrier's facilities. A third pillar is the commitment from government to allow for a speedy upgrade of the country's rail infrastructure to make the carrier competitive within the road transport sector.It also requires approval from government that will allow TransNamib to form smart partnerships with the private sector, within the ambit of the public-private partnership legislation, to strengthen services to customers. Smit said a challenge in the company is to bring about a change in mindset. He added that TransNamib needs to undergo organisational change management. Another tenet of the plan is governance, which seeks improved cooperation between the shareholder (government), the board and management. CATHERINE SASMAN

Mutorwa meets TransNamib board

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-09

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Mutorwa meets TransNamib board

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-09

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