News • Partner Content

SAPOA assists Namibian property owners in establishing an industry body

6 Oct 2023
by PropertyWheel_G
2 min read

The South African Property Owners Association (SAPOA) is assisting Namibian property owners in establishing the Namibian Property Owners Association (NPA).

SAPOA’s CEO, Neil Gopal, says the organisation assisted the NPA in signing MOU arrangements with the universities of Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria, and the Career Excel Academy (CEA) to provide educational courses for the NPA.

“The purpose of the MoU is to record that the NPA and the educational institutions are serious about negotiating with one another to agree to terms of which the educational institutions shall provide certain educational services to the NPA,” says Gopal.

SAPOA, which recently celebrated its 57th anniversary, named its elected board members at its 2023 Annual Convention – CEO of Attacq Limited, Jackie van Niekerk (and SAPOA’s new President), Vukile Property Fund’s MD, Itumeleng Mothibeli (President Elect), Pareto Limited’s CEO Malose Kekana, Redefine Properties’ CEO, Andrew König, Fortress Real Estate Investment Limited’s MD and CEO, Steven Brown, Equites Property Fund’s CFO Leila Razack, SA Corporate Real Estate’s COO Nomzamo Radebe, Dipula Income Fund’s FD, Sudesh Moodley and SAPOA’s Neil Gopal.

SAPOA represents almost 90% of the country’s commercial and industrial real estate owners and promotes member interests by representing them on matters affecting the property industry at national and local government levels. It also provides an extensive programme of educational activities, seminars, and workshops.

The NPA’s new President, Ben Jooste, who also attended SAPOA’s 2023 convention, is the MD of Oryx Properties Limited in Windhoek.

The NPA aims to increase knowledge and skills of the commercial real estate industry; ensure that the content of programs and/or workshops (and other educational interventions) are aligned to the Namibian property industry’s needs; raise employability and/or competence of the property practitioners and professionals in the industry; and to reduce the costs for local companies to upskill employees in the property sector.