High-ranking delegation of Namibian parliamentarians visits the Brandt School

The Namibian parliamentarians were invited by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAF) in Namibia, headed by Ms. Natalie Russmann, the country representative of the KAF. The delegation included the Speaker of the National Assembly, Prof. Peter Katjavivi and other lawmakers from the Namibian political parties SWAPO, UDF, LPM and PDM.

As part of an ongoing relationship with the Namibian Parliament, the KAF Namibia office has been organizing and supporting workshops and training measures in the different areas of the parliament over the past few years. The delegation's visit to Germany was based on the dialogue programme initiated by the KAF Namibia to strengthen relationships and share experiences with their counterparts in Germany. The dialogue program mainly addresses the challenges of digitalization, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the role of parliament as a guarantor of democracy.

During their visit to Germany, the delegation met German MPs and members of the German Bundestag serving in the Foreign Affairs Committee, Digital Affairs Committee, Parliamentary Services, Press and Information Office and a special meeting with the President of the German Bundestag. Apart from visiting the University of Erfurt, the delegation also visited the Thuringian State Parliament. The members of the delegation particularly focused on the importance and working methods of the parliament's standing committees, ways of strengthening public interest in parliamentary work and the parliament's press and outreach.

During their visit to the University of Erfurt, the Namibian delegates met the Brandt School representatives to engage in a dialogue on the technological growth and challenges of digitalization. The idea of this dialogue was to draw lessons from the advancements made in digitalization by Germany and analyze these with the Namibian experiences. The delegates were welcomed by the project head for Internationalisation and Digitalisation Dr. Hasnain Bokhari, and Lena Kiesewetter on behalf of the Brandt School. In her opening remarks, Ms. Kiesewetter greeted the honourable delegates by introducing them to the Brandt School as the first school of Public Policy in Germany. The representatives took a keen interest in the Brandt School's approach of acknowledging the importance of North-South cooperation as most students studying at the Brandt School are from the countries in the Global South.