Dear Editor

I WOULD like to know if you would do an article about the sensitive issue of diamond trading licenses that are not being issued as well as diamond mining concessions that are only given to certain directors, government officials or members of parliament.
I have been mandated by a group in the Democratic Republic of Congo to sell rough diamonds on their behalf and can provide the legal document to show it. I have traveled to the DRC and have established a solid supply of rough Kimberly Process Certified (KPC) diamonds. I have found that it is easier to export diamonds from the DRC than from our own country.
We ordinary Namibians are not given the opportunity to explore our natural resources. The Government is making it very difficult for us ordinary Namibians to do explorations.
But I am busy helping a South African investor to obtain diamond concessions in the DRC. Why can’t our government assist us in obtaining concessions and licenses here in our own country and by this we can bring in more revenue and create jobs. Many government officials have rich diamond concessions that they are not developing. Why should they be allowed to waste opportunities for growth like that?
I would like to be heard and to make the government aware of the fact that there is a lot of potential for Namibians like myself to help build the country and the nation. They should issue more diamond licenses and concessions to us. We have the resources and the knowledge to develop these concessions and bring revenue to Namibia, making a difference in the economic growth of our country.
Namibia is known to have the best quality diamonds in the world and it should be used to create a solid economic platform for our country and its people. It can still be controlled by the government, but they should make more licenses and concessions available.
Almost every week you read in the papers how Namibians are caught in foreign countries trying to sell diamonds without licenses and being arrested for that. It is the government giving them no choice - that is why they do it.
Imagine if we could explore those concessions; increase the production by at least 10% - how much revenue can be brought to our beautiful country.
I thus wish to make the Government aware that we are flocking to other countries and helping them boost their country’s economy by bringing in revenue to those countries. I want my voice to be heard and I want the Government to think outside of the box.
Companies like De-Beers make billions of dollars from our precious natural resources and the money is not being brought back to Namibia. I want to play a role in the economic development of our country and believe Namibia can be one of the richest countries in the world.
Help us build our country and help us make Namibia one of the richest African countries in Africa. At the moment Antwerp in Belgium is the diamond capital of the world. Why not make Windhoek the diamond capital of Africa, attracting all these millionaires to visit our beautiful country and investing their millions and billions here rather than in Europe.

B.J.Heyns
P.O.Box 21785
Windhoek
7 August 2007

Dear Editor,

I READ in your newspaper of 19 July about alleged favoritism in the appointment of the new Namibia Tourism Board CEO.
I also noted that the board of the same institution would prefer continuity as their main criterion and, indeed, if this was the reason, why even bother to advertise the position instead of simply promoting the people already on the board.
The same article states that the NTB registers all tourism establishments and carries out inspections to ensure that they comply with the required standards.
But the NTB in Namibia should also focus on selling the beauty of our primary touristic destinations - be it domestic or abroad. Tourism is leisure, recreation and travel and I think our tourism sector should focus on what kind of leisure and recreation our touristic destinations offer to our visitors. Successful tourism development involves fulfilling visitor expectations as well as attracting them to a destination. It must be borne in mind that basically tourism is actually in fact selling the beautiful scenery of our country. This means the preservation and conservation of these attributes cannot be over-emphasized.
In this regard we cannot just appoint anyone to head this important institution without him having an appreciation of such things as the environmental carrying capacity, limits of acceptable change, social carrying capacity, cost benefit analysis and an understanding of the relationship between the conservation of biological diversity and Tourism in Namibia. It is also not clear to me whether we understand the role of privately-owned lands used for tourism and conservation. If that is so, why do we as a Government spend so much money building accommodation in Sossusvlei instead of using that money towards conservation in Etosha or Khaudom, etc.
What this means is that we do not have a clear policy with respect to Government versus private enterprise interventions. The government should spend money on those activities that are considered vital to conservation and protection while the private sector should be encouraged to expand the hospitality industry.
I mean take for instance Khaudom National Park. There is no need for Government to spend money to put up accommodation facilities inside the park; instead the private sector could be supported to put up lodges outside the park on the adjacent land surrounding the park. That way the park would be free of any settlement and the Government would concentrate on conservation while earning money through park fees and entrance fees from tourists visiting the park.
The protected landscape or seascape (IUCN category V) provides a clear and legitimate alternative to a national park (IUCN cat II) in areas where the presence and the impact of resident populations and private ownership rule out a national park cat. II, or where it is the very harmony of people and nature which makes for an environment of quality and distinctiveness. The protected landscape provides huge potential to develop tourism further in our country.