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Maritime audit
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Mi Casa is coming
NAMIB TIMES 17 Page 13
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n zeigt eine u auf ein sernes Tor its von der ar. Wir fahuf dem Tor krand Rest der Wand Tea Garden Plakat anPages 16/17 Handynum- steht. Jetzt frage ich to Sie, liebe Leser: Wo in net die hek Chrysander unserer Welt, außer in die Dame England n uns ein. Kalkrands Teegarten, n in eine gibt es noch so etwas? Zum Kaffeetrinken gese. oysen setzt hört natürlich auch gestrahlendem nüssliche Ruhe, und nen Plunger- die hatten wir dort in der Oase im Rehoboth-
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NO6375 FRIDAY 1 AUGUST 2014
Page 36
Last days for Day1
Air Namibia
saga intensifies Marshallino Beukes
Following the downgrading of Windhoek’s Hosea Kutako International Airport (HKIA) from Category 9 to Category 5, Air Namibia is now forced to operate its Windhoek – Frankfurt route via Lusaka.
Staff Reporter
The chief executive officer (CEO) and founding member of the Prosperity Group of Companies, Bertus Struwig has confirmed that Prosperity Health has taken over the portfolio of Day 1 Health medical aid members. “The acquisition has been effective since the first of June this year,” Struwig confirms. Talks between Day1 Health and other medical aid firms have been in the process since the end of last year, but the legalities of the contract between Prosperity Health and Day1 has only been finalised at the beginning of July, Struwig says. Prosperity Group will send out a letter today to notify members that they will need to change their payment account numbers to the Prosperity Group banking account number. Struwig said that Prosperity would like their members to do so immediately. This is to ensure that monthly medical aid con-
tributions are paid into the Prosperity Group account number directly. When asked why Prosperity Group did not notify members, Struwig’s response was that they were waiting on the regulatory body to respond. According to Communications Practitioner at NAMFISA, Isack Hamata, any medical company who is entering into negotiations with another company need to inform all their members via email and a public notice through the media. The intentions and issues surrounding the negotiations then need to be raised at their Annual General Meeting (AGM). The company entering into negotiations therefore
needs to email every member and ask them to raise issues that need to be addressed at the AGM. After being raised at the AGM, the company then needs to report back on the issues that were raised. Merging decision contracts between companies can often request a non-disclosure, and if this is the case, only the Competition Commission can answer these questions, Hamata advises. However, every company entering into negotiations need to take steps to inform their members. “Nothing is changing,” Struwig insists, “coverage of members who were on the Day1 medical scheme will continue
as it is.” What will change, is the organisational company – Day1 medical aid members will now automatically fall under the Day1 Prosperity Group account. “We are a much bigger organisation with far more members than the Day1 organisation who only has 600 members, most of whom are in the low-income group living off of state funding,” Struwig commented telephonically. “Prosperity Group has various insurance packages and services, has been running for much longer and has a larger organisational structure. People will benefit from this,” Struwig concluded.
The downgrading followed after an audit by the Directorate of Civil Aviation (DCA) on Namibia Airports Company’s (NAC) facilities and the suspension came into effect due to alleged inadequacy of fire and rescue equipment by NCA. NAC owns and manages eight airports in Namibia namely Hosea Kutako, Ondangwa, Rundu, Katima Mulilo, Walvis Bay, Eros, Keetmanshoop and Lüderitz. Negative implications include the take-offs and landing of amongst others, VIAGEM’s A330-200 aircraft, which requires a category 8 airport for landing and take-off. This modus operandi will continue for the next two weeks or until such time that the Namibia Airports Company has fulfilled the requirements, Air Namibia said in a statement. The downgrading of Hosea Kutako Airport has affected all aircraft requiring cate-
gory 7 and higher rescue and firefighting services. Air Namibia did apply to be granted exemption in order to continue its Airbus A330 operations, which was granted on 24 July 2014. However, the latest review by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has reinforced the downgrade and has revoked any exemptions that might have been granted. As a result, Air Namibia can no longer operate the A330-200 fleet in or out of Hosea Kutako Airport until such time that NAC has rectified the shortcomings to the satisfaction of ICAO. Air Namibia, like other airlines operating into this airport with larger aircraft will be negatively impacted by this development. They have issued an apology for the inconvenience caused to travellers, also stating that the situation is outside their control and not of their own making.
Customer is king Dorcas Mhungu
The move taken by Old Mutual to integrate businesses in African countries outside South Africa, was a strategic decision and customer driven. Mr Sakaria Nghikembua, managing director, Old Mutual Short-Term Insurance Company (Namibia) said the move changed the ownership of the short term insurance business Mutual and Federal, a
South African company to Old Mutual Holdings Namibia, a 100% Namibia owned company. Nghikembua said at the end of May the organisation finalised the process and then changed the name
to Old Mutual Short-Term Insurance Company of Namibia. The strategic move meant putting all businesses in Namibia under one roof so that the customer has a choice of products under one roof.
“We changed our name, busy changing our brand and our marketing,” he explained adding that their banking facility, is not yet fully integrated into the Namibian company because it is a majority
Continues on page 2
Mr Sakaria Nghikembua
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