By Michel Haoses.
The Bank of Namibia (BoN) recently concluded a three-day working visit with a high-level delegation from the Deutsche Bundesbank, aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation and fostering dialogue between Namibia and Germany.
The German delegation, led by Burkhard Balz and Martin Theurer, both members of the Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank, engaged in extensive discussions with key Namibian stakeholders. These included representatives from the Office of the President, Parliament, the Ministry of Finance, the National Planning Commission, and the European Union.
According to a statement issued by the BoN, the discussions centred around economic and financial cooperation, global economic developments and developments and evolving challenges in the financial sector.
As part of the visit, Theurer delivered a lecture titled “Rising Challenges in the Banking Industry.” The lecture provided in-depth insights into how geopolitical tensions, digital transformation, and climate change are reshaping the global banking industry.
He further highlighted that although the two countries have distinct domestic challenges, they also face shared global issues that demand coordinated solutions and urged financial institutions to proactively manage geopolitical and geoeconomic risks, cautioning that the short-term gains from regulatory to rollbacks would be far outweighed by long-term instability.
In addition to the discussions on banking challenges, Balz delivered a lecture titled “The Impact of the Digital Euro on the Financial Sector,” where he shared insights into the ongoing development of Europe’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) and its potential implications for the global financial ecosystem, including African economies.
Since the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement between the Bank of Namibia and the Deutsche Bundesbank in June 2022, the two central banks have worked closely to identify and pursue new areas of cooperation, including digital transformation and innovation, macroeconomic research and modeling, digital currencies, and sustainability.
The central banks affirmed their commitment to continued collaboration to strengthen financial stability, enhance regulatory frameworks and promote economic resilience in the country as well as the continued to exchange of expertise and exploration of innovative solutions to navigate the evolving economic landscape.
Bank of Namibia Governor Johannes !Gawaxab, Deputy Bank of Namibia Governor Leonie Dunn, and Officer in Charge Marsorry Ickua welcome the executive board delegation from the Deutsche Bundesbank, fostering international collaboration in central banking.