Namibia struck by floods

Hifikepunye Pohamba, the president of the southern African country of Namibia, declared a state of emergency in in the country on Tuesday after heavy flooding killed 92 and displaced 5,032 since January.

“It is with a heavy heart that I declare an emergency for the north-central and north-eastern parts of Namibia,” the president said to reporters. “Crop fields are submerged in water and I send out an urgent appeal to the international community for assistance [...] as the current flood is worse than a year ago and could be one of the worst in recent memory.”

Namibia refuse to remove VAT on milk

The Namibian government has refused to remove value added tax (VAT) on the price of milk. The Namibian Dairy producers organization requested the Namibian directorate of local income in May 2006 to follow the example of South Africa and declare fresh milk as a basic need upon which no taxation is applicable.

Mnr. Calle Schlettwein, permanent Secretary of the Namibia Ministry of Finance said the decision not to discard VAT on milk is because of two reasons: “This industry is already receiving advantages because of Article 26 of the African Customs Union (SACU),” he said.