Staff Writer
Windhoek – In 31 years of Independence, Namibia has seen the rise of some solid local companies that are at the cutting edge of modern technologies.
Among those is Black Gold Engineering (BGE), which has carved a niche for itself in the manufacturing of the increasingly popular energy-saving LED bulbs.
The Namibian company has seen its portfolio growing tremendously since 2014 when it was registered, and BGE has won many accolades in the world for its creativity and innovations.
According to Chief Executive Officer Pedro Da Fonseca, the sky is the limit for BGE as they have plans to conquer not only Namibia, but are also actively targeting to compete effectively across the continent.
“We manufacture and assemble our very own LED lights for public, industrial and domestic lighting. But we also offer electrical installations and electrical engineering consulting services. With our LED lights called NamLux we have travelled Africa and the world.
“Awards won in Africa are, Creative Business Ambassador Africa 2019/2020 (CBC AWARDS) Kenya, Start-up of the year 2019 Namibia (SAIS), overall winner Inventors fair South Africa 2017 & Egypt Cairo 2017. Most influential African start up 2018 Nigeria Abuja. To mention but a few,” Da Fonseca said.
He said the company has firm plans for growth in Namibia and is working tirelessly to achieve its aims.
“We are always involved in some or other developments that are soon to come, we are doing a lot of solar and green scheme projects. At the same time we are improving our products to cater for all industries. I actually invented an LED light that I hold patents to in five different continents, USA, Europe, Asia Africa and the Oceans. So all I am currently doing is sort of on a league of its own compared to others,” he said
Da Fonseca added that, “We do not compromise on quality and we offer a product that consumes less electricity making it very energy efficient and saves up to 70 percent on costs as well. Our products are long-lasting and offer brighter lighting. They can be used with both electricity and solar; so they are superior to our competitors in a lot of ways. Is this not a product one would spend a little more on for guaranteed quality?”
Like many others in the world, the company has not been spared the negative economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This pandemic has affected everyone greatly, including BGE. There have been challenges like contracts cancelled and investment issues, to name a few.
“We need support in the form of more public and private interests to assist us in manufacturing more and spreading our lights throughout Africa, in every street, every home, every business. Today we have 15 people employed working from our very own warehouse and we want to employ more,” the BGE boss said.
He said the time had come for Namibian entities to thrive and be able to deal with competition from anywhere as the country celebrates 31 years of Independence.
“Namibia has come a long way in 31 years of independence; but not by itself but by the time and efforts of those before us. It’s now our turn to grow her further, by not just depending on foreigners but in our own ability to create, grow, provide, produce and manufacture. Cut out the middlemen be self-sufficient,” Da Fonseca said.
