As part of the Guest Programme of the German Federal Government, Hon. Deputy Minister for Industrialisation and Commerce and Member of Parliament Lucia Iipumbu, the Deputy Chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee for Economy and Public Administration and Member of Parliament, Loide Shinavene and the President of the Namibian Manufacturers Association Brian Black travelled to Germany from 8 to 12 April 2019. Together with high-ranked representatives from Botswana, they took part in a joint regional programme on the topic of “Extending domestic value chains”.

The Guest Programme of the Federal Republic of Germany is a joint political programme of the German Federal Parliament and the Federal Government, which enables high- ranking foreign opinion leaders to travel to Germany and thus gain an authentic, up-to-date and nuanced insight into the German society. Participants usually spend a week in Germany at the invitation of the Federal Government.

The visit to Berlin and Stuttgart included meetings with Federal Foreign Office Minister of State Michelle Müntefering, the Parliamentary Committee on Economic Cooperation and Development as well as the Parliamentary Committee on Economic Affairs and Energy and the Parliamentary Friendship Group for Relations with the SADC countries. The delegation also met different trade associations, had talks with representatives of German companies like Mercedes Benz and visited manufacturers and manufacturing plants.