The Approach

The Namibian Government should be congratulated on the approach they followed in formulating the Green Paper which will now serve as the basis for the Coastal Policy. The development process for the Namibian coastal white paper development has followed a human-centred approach.

Long gone are the days when people believed that the natural world could be divided up into neat administrative units and that each of those units could be managed by a team of scientific experts. While science has a critical role to play in terms of defining biophysical realities along the coast, as was the case in this policy process, successful coastal management requires much more. Socio-economic and governance aspects are as important as a sound understanding of natural systems when it comes to effective coastal management. People are still the primary influence on how coastal resources are used, and it is people and their activities that need to be managed in order to maintain a healthy coastal environment and utilize the coastal resources in a sustainable manner. People are also the main beneficiaries of a properly managed coast. Therefore, a highly participatory process was followed in which stakeholders’ views, needs, concerns and aspirations in terms of how they want to see their coast used in the future is occupying a central place in the Coastal Policy Process.

Not surprisingly, the Namibian Coastal Policy Process has been hailed as a remarkable example of a ‘bottom up, top down’ policy initiative, one in which Government and civil society has joined hands in confronting the difficulties preventing optimal use of our coastal areas. It is from this dialogue between Government and civil society that a successful and highly implementable coastal policy is being born.

Visioning Exercises and Draft Green Paper Workshops

The Namibian nation was given ample opportunity to give their inputs into the Green
Paper, through very inclusive, responsive and comprehensive visioning workshops;
questionnaires and radio-phone-in programmes. Emphasis was placed on informed and meaningful participation, as opposed to mere attendance at public meetings.

A wide range of issues emerged from the Visioning workshops, including management issues, socio-economic concerns, development opportunities, conservation, multiple use, zoning and other forms of coastal planning, education and awareness, mining, land ownership and access to the coast, tourism, basic services and infrastructure needs, continued community involvement and public participation; transparency and simplicity, social responsibility, youth development; environmental health; sustainable options for fulfilling essential future energy and water needs, culture and heritage; and the geographic reach of the Policy which all parties felt should include both the land and sea.

Development of the National Vision

In all the visioning workshops participants identified key issues, problems and concerns along the coastal areas. Participants were asked to express their views on what kind of coast they want to see, and what kind of resource uses they want to see there. The discussions were steered towards finding agreement on how Namibians see their coast and want its uses to evolve over the medium-term to long-term. The process was designed to foster a sense of collective involvement, ownership and ongoing engagement, involving all sectors of society. The National Coastal Vision for Namibia reads as follows:

“We, the Namibian people want our coastal areas used in a wise manner, so that social, cultural, environmental and economic concerns are carefully balanced with the overall aim of sustainability in mind, and conservation and economic progress going hand in hand in an integrated manner. All our resources should be developed to their full, including our natural and human resources, with fair and transparent access to opportunities for all, now and into the future”.

The Green Paper reports on the process thus far, and has been released for comment and scrutiny. It honours the request by participants for simplicity in language and concepts.

The Process from Here to Conclusion

The next phase will rely strongly on the findings and participation of the process thus far. This phase will be the development of the Namibia Coastal Management White Paper (NACOWP) and, finally, the Namibian Coastal Policy itself. A White Paper, which is the forerunner to the Namibian Coastal Policy, will be developed. In it, the actual management of the coastal zone will be discussed, as well as the many imperatives that have surfaced in terms of how the coast should be used; in what way, by whom, and how benefits will come to the nation and local populations. The Green Paper describes all the issues related to the coastal areas as well as the stakeholders’ visions, expectations and aspirations with regards to the coast. These expectations, visions and aspirations will now be discussed amongst Government and expert parties, and from there the Namibian Coastal Policy which sets out principles, objectives, directions and mechanisms will be formulated. However, all sorts of provisions must be made for the policy must be implemented. For this reason the policy will be accompanied by an Implementation Strategy and Action Plan, which will ensure that implementation occurs, that it will be monitored in a transparent manner, and that mechanisms for the effective management of the Namibian coast will be instated and maintained.

The Green Paper document has been posted on DLIST and we will keep the public updated on further developments!