KNOWLEDGE Katti is called Namibia's "go-to guy" and was the driving force behind the biggest Namibian oil-exploration project to date, off the coast of Walvis Bay.

This is just a stone's throw from Kuisemond township where Mr Katti was raised by his grandmother.

From humble beginnings, MrKatti moved on to become one of Namibia's most successful businessmen at an early age.

He studied at the University of Namibia, completed his accounting articles at PricewaterhouseCoopers and spent time in the investment world in the US before deciding that the world of making and breaking deals would be his destiny.

Interviewed on a dock in Swakopmund, Mr Katti's manner resembled that of South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe, who he has been in regular conversation with in recent weeks.

A possible deal between these two forces should not be ruled out.

Mr Katti said that, besides his dream of finding oil off the coast of Namibia, he is also considering buying out AngloGold Ashanti's gold-mining operations in Namibia.

Mr Katti already has a presence in gold through a company named Giyani Gold.

Mr Motsepe is not the only South African business leader being approached by Katti. He has also been meeting Nosizwe-Nocawe Nokwe, head of PetroSA.

Mr Katti has been drawing significant interest to Nambia from foreign investors, from Canada and Brazil especially, but said he would like more "neighbourly partnerships" as well.

"Seeing that Namibia and South Africa are right next to each other, and Namibia is already so heavily invested in South Africa through its pension funds, it only makes sense for us to develop these kinds of partnerships," Mr Katti explained.

PetroSA would not say if a deal might be clinched, but the company noted that the west coast of South Africa and Southern Namibia share the same geological basin and any discovery in either Namibia or South Africa would "augur well" for the entire region.

Asked if a company like SacOil would be interested in investing in Mr Katti's dreams of finding black gold, CEO Robin Vela said that as Namibia is so close to SacOil's South African base it is naturally of interest to the company.

Networking and getting deals done is Mr Katti's forte. He was the first Namibian to list a company on the Toronto Stock Exchange. There he managed to raise money, sell his business Kunene Energy and reinvest the money in Brazilian company HRT, which will be drilling on the Namibian coast for the next eight months.

A local journalist described Mr Katti as the "go-to guy" for everyone, including the big wigs in the Namibian government, and a playboy — referring to his lifestyle, which is filled with private jets, Bentley cars and beautiful women.

That he has strong government support was evident in the Namibian political elite, including the country's first president Sam Nujoma, being flown in by helicopter for a visit to the oil rig Mariana Transoceana.

Mr Katti said that while he has big business ambitions for the future, one of his main priorities is to assist the people of Namibia who come from humble backgrounds similar to his.

Every year Mr Katti hands out 10 university bursaries to deserving students. He himself was helped financially to complete his degree at the University of Nambia.

Mr Katti said he started the Knowledge Foundation in 2008 as a way to give back to the country and community that helped shape him.

The foundation has various aspects, including Open Minds, which focuses on education; Brick by Brick, which encourages community cohesion and advancement, and Healing Hands, which focuses on welfare and healthcare issues.

Mr Katti certainly seems to be well liked and well known in a country that has a small population of 2.1-million people.

Some people go as far as calling him "our future president".

* This article was first published in Sunday Times: Business Times