Speakers

Mr. Godfrey Ngaisiue is a distinguished member of the Debmarine Namibia Executive Management team, overseeing the Mineral Resource Management portfolio. With a remarkable tenure of 21 years at Debmarine Namibia, he has ascended through the ranks from Exploration Geoscientist to Senior Project Geoscientist, Evaluation Manager, and Mineral Resources Strategic Projects Manager. Mr. Ngaisiue's educational background is extensive. He holds an Advanced Postgraduate Specialisation Diploma (M Eng) in Geostatistics from the National Superior School of Mines of Paris, a Graduate Diploma in Engineering (Mining) from the University of the Witwatersrand, a Master's in Exploration Geophysics from the University of Leeds, and a Bachelor of Science Honours in Exploration Geophysics from the University of Pretoria. Additionally, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Geography from the University of Namibia. In addition to his academic achievements, Mr. Ngaisiue has pursued various leadership development courses, including the Senior Executive Programme as well as the Corporate Finance Programme both from the London Business School, Programme for Management Excellence from the Gordon Institute for Business Science (GIBS), and the Senior Management Development Programme from the Stellenbosch Business School. As a recognition of his expertise and experience, he has recently been appointed as a non-executive Director on the NAMCOR Board.

Riaan Burger is the Chief Executive Officer of Namdeb Diamond Corporation (Pty) Ltd. Prior to his appointment in 2017, he held a number of different leadership, engineering and project management roles and was responsible for several of Namdeb’s ground-breaking business extension projects. Riaan is a Mechanical Engineer by profession, and also holds an MBA from the University of Stellenbosch Business School. He has attended programs with London Business School, INSEAD and Oxford and serves on a number of industry forums. Prior to joining Namdeb, Riaan worked in the aviation industry. During this time, he gained experience in aircraft maintenance management and flight safety. He is a part-time farmer, private pilot and president of the Namibian Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.

Maggy Shino heads the Petroleum Affairs Directorate within the Namibian Ministry of Mines and Energy. She has over 15 years working experience in petroleum geological & geophysical and environmental management related fields with a substantial part of her job requirements being supervisory and in field works. Her career journey started when she joined the Ministry as an Energy Researcher where she was responsible for making use of energy research findings to influence honoring energy demands and policy formulations in the renewable energy sector. She later became a Petroleum Inspector with the responsibilities of ensuring the health, safety, and environmental sustainability in the petroleum upstream and downstream sector. In an effort to focus on advancing the exploration activities in Namibia she later became the Petroleum Geologist conducting geochemical and structural analysis to locate possible oil and gas accumulations on the Namibian continental shelf. She advanced with this role through different rankings to become a Deputy Director and this led to her progressing to the role of Director of the Petroleum Affairs Directorate where she regulates the petroleum upstream and downstream sector. Her current role as the Petroleum Commissioner involves amongst other responsibilities the promotion of oil and gas investments, negotiating Petroleum Agreements, issuing of licenses and the administration of the Petroleum Exploration and Production Act. Mrs Shino has served as a Board member of Namibia’s Petroleum Training and Education Fund (Petrofund). Mrs Shino holds a Masters degree in Petroleum Geochemistry from the University of Newcastle in the United Kingdom, a BSc degree in Biology and Chemistry from the University of Namibia and a diploma in Upstream Management of Petroleum Development and Operations from PETRAD, Stavanger in Norway. She further holds an MBA degree from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. Through her career journey she attended trainings in various petroleum related fields including Oil, Gas and Mining Governance from Blavatnik School of Governance at the University of Oxford.

Morna Ikosa is a certified public relations practitioner with over a decade of experience in brand management, strategic communications, digital marketing, public relations, stakeholder engagement , reputation and issues management at both executive and middle management levels. She has developed robust communication strategies and policies that influence high-level decision-making. She has worked with some of Namibia’s leading brands like Bank Windhoek, First National Bank, Namibian Breweries, CRAN, and GIPF. She is also a moderator, columnist and aspiring filmmaker. She spearheaded regional and African projects that promoted the girls in ICT agenda. She is a lobbyist and her skills and experience have been utilised by organisations such as the International Telecommunication Union (the ICT arm of the United Nations) to advocate for SADC countries’ ICT agendas.

Ms. Barcelona Tsauses is the Director of Sustainability and Business Transformation at Dundee Precious Metals Tsumeb. Ms. Tsauses is a Chemical Engineer and holds an Executive Management MBA from the University of Cape Town. She has more than 17 years of experience in various commodities namely: Zinc, Uranium and Copper and has developed and implemented various business systems including Organizational Transformation, Effectiveness and Accountability that led to record production and sustainable value creation over her career. Ms. Tsauses has designed and commissioned various plant units across her career, including the state-of-the-art Sulphuric Acid Plant at Dundee Precious Metals Tsumeb to mention a few. In 2009, she was awarded a global outstanding achievement by Anglo American for the design and commissioning of a processing unit. She is one of the founding members of the Women in Mining Association of Namibia. She is the Chairperson of the Health & Safety Committee of the Chamber of Mines of Namibia and further served on the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) Advisory Committee of the Metallurgy Engineering degree programme.

Mr. Vilho Hanghome, (Founder and Managing Director, KODO Drilling, Namibia), has a BSc Geology, Computer Science and a Postgraduate diploma in Business Administration. Mr Hanghome has worked in the Exploration and Mining industry for 14 years and his last working portfolio was General Manager at Epangelo Mining, before starting his own business, KODO Drilling in 2016. Over the years, Mr Hanghome has developed KODO Drilling to become one of Namibia’s leading drilling companies that provide services to the mining sector.

John Roos is the Country Manager and Director of B2Gold Namibia, the nation’s largest gold mining company, which is 90% owned by B2Gold Corporation and 10% by EVI Mining Namibia. In his role, John oversees the company’s long-term strategy and corporate development. Before his appointment as Country Manager in November 2022, John led the Corporate Finance function and managed various green energy projects within the company. John is also actively involved in the Company’s Corporate Social Investment (CSI) initiatives, spearheading various projects. He is a registered Chartered Accountant (SA) and a member of the Executive Committee of the Chamber of Mines of Namibia. Additionally, John serves on the boards of the Save The Rhino Trust and Nakayale Private Academy.

John is an experienced mining executive and geologist with more than 45 years’ uranium industry experience. He founded Paladin Energy Limited in 1993 and took it from a junior explorer to a multi-mine uranium company worth more than US$5 billion at its peak in the pre-Fukushima era. He was appointed to the role of Managing Director/CEO of Deep Yellow in 2016, has since built a capable, experienced team with a proven track record and initiated a dual pillar growth strategy of discovery of new deposits and mergers and acquisitions. The flagship Tumas Uranium Project in Namibia is now on a development path aiming for production late 2026 of 3.6Mlb pa with a 22-year mine life and potential for a further 10 years.

Gerda is a Tax Director and leads the Tax Business Unit of Deloitte in Namibia. She was appointed a Director in 2010 and has over 25 years tax experience. With her expertise, she specialises in all forms of taxation and consults to a portfolio of corporates, listed and medium sized clients, on a wide range of tax issues. Gerda consults on tax laws, inbound investments and Namibian tax landscape for the Mining, Oil & Gas, Financial Services, Manufacturing and Telecommunications industries to name a few, and has extensive tax compliance experience in Oil & Gas and Mining. She is a member of the Law Society of Namibia and the Legislative subcommittee of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAN) Tax Committee, and contributes actively to tax legislation developments in Namibia. Gerda holds qualifications in Commerce and Law, and her extensive experience makes her a trusted advisor in complex tax landscapes.

Nangula is a Chartered Accountant by Profession and has served as an auditor and business consultant over 24 years at PwC Namibia until December 2020 at the end of her 10-year service as the Firm's first female and first black Country Managing Partner. Beside the country role at PwC Namibia, she had also served on the PwC Southern Africa Regional Governing body as well as the Regional Management Team. She is the first CEO and Chairperson of the Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB), a Public Entity in the Presidency tasked with the mandate of promoting and facilitating foreign and domestic investments and coordinating the development of the MSME sector. Over the years Nangula has grown a burden concerning the triple challenges of unemployment, inequality and poverty that are facing Namibia. This led her to serve on the President’s high-level panel on the Namibian economy as the Deputy Chairperson in 2019, in the midst of a protracted recession and to pursue further studies (first the Master in Business Leadership and now a Doctorate in Business Leadership) with focus on the collaborative role required between the public and private sectors to drive inclusive economic growth and find common solutions to these challenges. Nangula was appointed by the President alongside five Ministers, the Governor of the Bank of Namibia and the Economic Adviser to the President to serve as a member of Namibia’s first Green Hydrogen Council which is the inter-ministerial political committee responsible for overseeing GH2 implementation in Namibia.

Hon. Tom Alweendo, is the Minister of Mines and Energy in the Cabinet of the Republic of Namibia. Born on 17 March 1958, in Okahenge, Oshana Region, Hon. Thomas Kavaningilamo Alweendo was appointed as Minister of Mines and Energy in February 2018 by President Hage G. Geingob. Prior to his appointment, Alweendo was the Director General of the National Planning Commission appointed by former President, H.E Hifikepunye Pohamba as Director General of the National Planning Commission (NPC). The National Planning Commission is a Constitutional body that is tasked with the responsibility to plan the priorities and direction of national development. In March 2015 he was appointed by President Hage G. Geingob as Minister of Economic Planning and also as Director General of the NPC. His extensive economic experience stems from having served as the Governor of the Bank of Namibia from January 1997 to March 2010. Alweendo was the first Namibian to serve as Governor of the Central Bank when he was appointed by Namibia’s Founding President Sam Nujoma. Before being appointed as Governor, he served as Deputy Governor for four years (1993-1996). Among some of his achievements during his tenure at the Bank of Namibia are the establishment of the local currency, the Namibia Dollar; the localization of the payments and banking systems; and the establishment of the Financial Intelligence Center. As Director General of the National Planning Commission, he presided over the drafting of Namibia’s fourth National Development Plan (NDP4). The NDP4 prioritized specific economic sectors that are perceived to have more potential to grow the economy and provide employment opportunities. This is notably agriculture, logistics, tourism, and manufacturing. The Plan also propounds a hands-on approach with regard to the Government’s role in economic development albeit in closer and effective collaboration with the private sector. Over the course of the NDP4 period the Namibian economy grew on average at 5.7 percent, despite the global economic crises and current global commodity crises. The Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) is the State’s lead agency in attracting private investment in resources exploration and development through the provision of geoscientific information on minerals and energy resources, and management of an equitable and secure titles systems for the mining, petroleum and geothermal industries. As the Minister of Mines and Energy, he seeks to provides access to Namibia's geological, mineral and energy resources for sustainable economic growth, equal benefit and prosperity to all Namibian citizens. He is a firm believer that with ordinary talent, combined with extraordinary perseverance and buttressed by meritocracy, all things are achievable. He is a firm believer that with ordinary talent, combined with extraordinary perseverance and buttressed by meritocracy, all things are achievable.An avid reader and knowledge seeker, Hon. Tom Alweendo holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa and a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.

Elmo Erasmus is a seasoned professional with extensive experience in the supply chain and systems design and development sectors. With a career spanning over 45 years, he has held roles across various corporate organisations including Rössing. Currently, as the Managing Member of Tara Nawa Computer Software Solutions, he continues to leverage his extensive knowledge and experience to drive innovation and efficiency in the e-Procurement and e-Recruitment sectors.

Mr. Veston Malango is the Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber of Mines of Namibia. He is a Mining Engineer with a M.Sc. Degree (1985) from the Technical University Bergakademie Freiberg, Germany and a qualified Gemmologist with Diplomas (1993) in Diamond Grading and in Coloured Gemstones from the German Gemmological Training Centre in Idar-Oberstein, Germany. Mr. Malango holds an MBA (2004) from the Maastricht School of Management, The Netherlands. Mr. Malango has over 35 of experience in the mining industry in the SADC region. He worked in the Zambian copper mines after university studies as a graduate mining engineer, then at the Ministry of Mines and the SADC Mining Sector Coordinating Unit in Lusaka. Mr Malango was the Deputy Director of Mines at the Ministry of Mines and Energy of Namibia for eight years and then joined Ongopolo Mining & Processing Ltd, for one and half years as Director responsible for strategic projects. He has been heading the Chamber of Mines of Namibia since October 2005. Mr. Malango currently serves on Boards of the Namibia University of Science and Technology – Mining & Process Engineering Advisory Board (Board Chairperson), Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology (NIMT) and the Minerals Development Fund of Namibia (MDF). He has previously served on several other Boards; i.e. Bank of Namibia (Chairperson of the BoN Remuneration Committee), the Council of the Namibia University of Science and Technology as Vice-Chairperson, Namibia Trade Forum and the Namibia Medical Care (NMC) Fund. He is the past President of the Mining Industry Association of Southern Africa (MIASA), a private sector regional body of all Chambers of Mines in the SADC Region. MIASA membership comprises the Chambers of Mines of Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia & Zimbabwe.

Mr Kasete has more than 34 years’ of global experience in the mining industry, including in executive, corporate, operational and strategic roles. Mr. Kasete is a metallurgist by profession and worked in uranium, borates, talc, diamond, copper and gold operations. In 2003, he obtained an MBA Degree in General and Strategic Management from Maastricht School of Management, The Netherlands. Prior to joining Dundee in February 2016 as Vice President & Managing Director of Dundee Precious Metals, Mr. Kasete served as Managing Director of Murowa Diamond Pvt Limited, Zimbabwe, which is one of the only diamond producers which was not nationalized and as non-executive director at Sengwa Colliery (Pvt) Ltd. Prior moving to Zimbabwe in 2011, he spent 25 years at Rio Tinto where he joined as cadet metallurgist in 1987 in Namibia. In Rio Tinto, Mr. Kasete held senior roles in operations, technical, procurement, human resources, corporate services, business development and stakeholder engagement space within both in his native country Namibia as well in Australia, USA and Zimbabwe. He currently holds the office of President of the Chamber of Mines Namibia.

Roger Hewson is Rand Merchant Bank South Africa’s vastly experienced Global Markets Commodities asset class specialist. His tenure in the industry spans almost 30 years and, since joining RMB in 2009, he has risen to lead the bank’s Commodities and FX sales teams. Roger is an acknowledged deal-maker in the large corporates arena, predominately in the Mining and Resources, and Manufacturing sectors. He has a keen focus on deal-making in the Namibian region and, in conjunction with other RMB Global Markets’ Structuring team members, specializes in marketing RMB GM’s full range of Fixed Income, Commodity and Structured FX products to the bank’s existing and potential clients. Roger also supports RMB GM’s Africa Sales team with commodity hedges covering soft commodities, base metals, energy and PGMS.

Irvinne Simataa is a qualified, competent mining engineer and mining executive with a set of well-developed competencies and a diversified mineral commodities experience, having managed diverse and unionized, technical, operational and management teams onshore and offshore and indeed internationally. With over 20 years in the mining industry, he has provided leadership on multi-million dollar projects and operations as well as spearheaded successful business turnarounds. He is well positioned to understand and speak to the dynamics of the extractive industry in general. In line with the forever increasing need to find smarter techno-economical means of extracting mineral resources safely and sustainability, he brings innovation and robust thinking to the table with this prime objective in mind.

Prelene Parkash has over 20 years’ experience across the Workforce value chain, ranging from strategy development, organisational effectiveness, culture transformation and creating an organisation and workforce that is future fit, to create readiness for the Fourth Industrial revolution. She is the Workforce and HR Transformation lead for the mining sector. Having worked across multiple sectors, including mining, financial, telecommunications and manufacturing, she has the benefit of experiencing multiple operating models, cultures, technologies, and ways of working. Prelene is passionate about the people agenda, and believes that through coaching and mentorship, people can reach their full potential, and contribute meaningfully in the workplace Prelene has designed and implemented new culture journeys to align organisations to their strategic intents. To do this, she plays to her strengths of being able to influence a boardroom conversation to ensure that organisations continue to be relevant and competitive. Prelene has worked closely with leadership teams to create multifunctional teams, to foster collaboration across the business, to create a more engaged and empowered workforce. Her focus is on value creation for the business, whilst placing people at the centre of all changes in the business.

Introducing Werner Ewald, Managing Director of Bannerman Mining Resources (Namibia). Werner has been with Bannerman Resources for 14 years, bringing extensive experience from roles at Namdeb, De Beers in Kimberley (South Africa), Rio Tinto's Rössing Uranium Mine, and the Tarong Coal Mine (Australia). Born in Windhoek, Werner attended St. Paul's School and holds an Electrical Engineering degree from the University of Cape Town, along with a Master of Business Administration from the University of Stellenbosch. Bannerman Resources has been exploring in Namibia since 2006, advancing its primary asset, the Etango Uranium Project, to the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) stage. Over the past 2 years, the company has operated a Heap Leach Demonstration Plant to showcase robust metallurgical parameters, optimize processes, and enhance internal capabilities.

Johan joined Langer Heinrich in 2017 and became the Managing Director in 2018 – leading LHU from care and maintenance to restart. Langer Heinrich Uranium has been a member of the Namibian Uranium Institute since its inception and a member of the Chamber of Mines of Namibia since the start of operations.

George is a Mining Engineer by Training and joined Navachab Gold Mine as a mining engineer in 2004. He has taken roles in strategic mine planning and production management over the years. George was appointed as Managing Director of Navachab Gold mine in January 2018. As Managing Director, George led the mine through a very successful turnaround, increasing production and lowering operating costs. The mine is now able to sustain its operations and has embarked on several expansion projects which include doubling mining and processing capacity. George Holds a Mining Engineering Honours Degree from the University of Zimbabwe, a Post Graduate Mining Engineering degree from Wits University and an MBA from the London School of Business and Finance.