📰 Namibia · page 4

About 4,000 commercial farmers own almost half of Namibia's arable land.[156]275 The United Kingdom offered about $180,000 in 2004 to help finance Namibia's land reform process, as Namibia plans to start expropriating land from white farmers to resettle landless black Namibians.[157]276 Germany has offered €1.1bn in 2021 over 30 years in reparations for the genocides in the early 20th century but the money will go towards infrastructure, healthcare and training programmes not land reform.[158]277

An agreement has been reached on the privatisation of several more enterprises in coming years, with hopes that this will stimulate much needed foreign investment, but reinvestment of environmentally derived capital has hobbled Namibian per capita income.[159]278 One of the fastest growing areas of economic development in Namibia is the growth of wildlife conservancies.279

Mining and electricity

Main article: Mining in Namibia

Providing 25% of Namibia's revenue, mining is the single most important contributor to the economy.[160]280 Namibia is the fourth largest exporter of non-fuel minerals in Africa and was the world's fourth largest producer of uranium.281 There have been significant investment in uranium mining and Namibia planned to become the largest exporter of uranium by 2015.[161]282 However, as of 2019 Namibia continued to produce 750 tons of uranium annually making it a smaller than average exporter in the competitive world market.[162]283 Rich alluvial diamond deposits make Namibia a primary source for gem-quality diamonds.[163]284 While Namibia is known predominantly for its gem diamond and uranium deposits, a number of other minerals are extracted industrially such as lead, tungsten, gold, tin, fluorspar, manganese, marble, copper and zinc.285 Country's gold production in 2015 was 6 metric tons.[164]286 There are offshore gas deposits in the Atlantic Ocean that are planned to be extracted in the future.[165]287 According to "The Diamond Investigation", a book about the global diamond market, from 1978, De Beers, the largest diamond company, bought most of the Namibian diamonds, and would continue to do so, because "whatever government eventually comes to power they will need this revenue to survive".[166]288

Although much of the world's diamond supply comes from what have been called African blood diamonds, Namibia has managed to develop a diamond mining industry largely free of the kinds of conflict, extortion, and murder that have plagued many other African nations with diamond mines.289 This has been attributed to political dynamics, economic institutions, grievances, political geography, and the effects of neighbourhoods, and is the result of a joint agreement between the government and De Beers that has led to a taxable base, strengthening state institutions.[167]290

Estimates updated in 2022 suggest that two exploration wells in the offshore Orange Basin could hold 2 and 3 billion barrels of oil, respectively.291 The expected revenue could transform Namibia's domestic economy and facilitate sustainable development goals.[168]292

Domestic supply voltage is 220 V AC.293 Electricity is generated mainly by thermal and hydroelectric power plants.294 Non-conventional methods of electricity generation also play some role.295 Encouraged by the rich uranium deposits, in 2010 the Namibian government planned to erect its first nuclear power station by 2018.296 Uranium enrichment was also envisaged to take place locally.[169]297

Tourism

Main article: Tourism in Namibia

Tourism is a major contributor (14.5%) to Namibia's GDP, creating tens of thousands of jobs (18.2% of all employment) directly or indirectly and servicing over a million tourists per year.[170]298 The country is a prime destination in Africa and is known for ecotourism, which features Namibia's extensive wildlife.[171]299

There are many lodges and reserves to accommodate ecotourists.300 Sport and trophy hunting is also a large and growing component of the Namibian economy, accounting for 14% of total tourism in the year 2000, or 19.6 million U.S. dollars, with Namibia boasting numerous species sought after by international sport hunters.[172]301

In addition, extreme sports such as sandboarding, skydiving and 4x4ing have become popular, and many cities have companies that provide tours.302 The most visited places include the capital city of Windhoek corpus, Caprivi Strip, Fish River Canyon, Sossusvlei, the Skeleton Coast Park, Sesriem, Etosha Pan and the coastal towns of Swakopmund, Walvis Bay and Lüderitz.[173]303

Windhoek plays a very important role in Namibia's tourism due to its central location and close proximity to Hosea Kutako International Airport.304 According to The Namibia Tourism Exit Survey, which was produced by the Millennium Challenge Corporation for the Namibian Directorate of Tourism, 56% of all tourists visiting Namibia in 2012–13 visited Windhoek.[174]305 Many of Namibia's tourism related parastatals and governing bodies such as Namibia Wildlife Resorts and the Namibia Tourism Board as well as Namibia's tourism-related trade associations such as the Hospitality Association of Namibia are headquartered in Windhoek.[175]306 There are also a number of notable hotels in Windhoek, such as Windhoek Country Club Resort, and some international hotel chains, such as Hilton Hotels and Resorts.307

Namibia's primary tourism related governing body, the Namibia Tourism Board (NTB), was established by an Act of Parliament: the Namibia Tourism Board Act, 2000 (Act 21 of 2000).308 Its primary objectives are to regulate the tourism industry and to market Namibia as a tourist destination.[176]309 There are also a number of trade associations that represent the tourism sector in Namibia, such as the Federation of Namibia Tourism Associations (the umbrella body for all tourism associations in Namibia), the Hospitality Association of Namibia, the Association of Namibian Travel Agents, Car Rental Association of Namibia and the Tour and Safari Association of Namibia.[177]310

Water supply and sanitation

Main article: Water supply and sanitation in Namibia

The only bulk water supplier in Namibia is NamWater, which sells it to the respective municipalities which in turn deliver it through their reticulation networks.[178]311 In rural areas, the directorate of Rural Water Supply in the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform is in charge of drinking water supply.[178]312

The UN evaluated in 2011 that Namibia has improved its water access network significantly since independence in 1990.313 A large part of the population can not, however, make use of these resources due to the prohibitively high consumption cost and the long distance between residences and water points in rural areas.[178]314 As a result, many Namibians prefer the traditional wells over the available water points far away.[179]315

Compared to the efforts made to improve access to safe water, Namibia is lagging behind in the provision of adequate sanitation.[180]316 This includes 298 schools that have no toilet facilities.[181]317 Over 50% of child deaths are related to lack of water, sanitation, or hygiene; 23% are due to diarrhea alone.318 The UN has identified a "sanitation crisis" in the country.[179]319

Apart from residences for upper and middle class households, sanitation is insufficient in most residential areas.320 Private flush toilets are too expensive for virtually all residents in townships due to their water consumption and installation cost.321 As a result, access to improved sanitation has not increased much since independence: in Namibia's rural areas 13% of the population had more than basic sanitation, up from 8% in 1990.322 Many of Namibia's inhabitants have to resort to "flying toilets", plastic bags to defecate into, which after use are flung into the bush.[182]323 The use of open areas close to residential land for urination and defecation is very common[183] and has been identified as a major health hazard.[181]324

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Namibia

Namibia has the second-lowest population density of any sovereign country, after Mongolia corpus, as well as having the lowest population density of any sovereign country with a coastline.[184]325 In 2017 there were on average 3.08 people per km2.[185]326 The total fertility rate in 2015 was 3.47 children per woman according to the UN which is lower than the average TFR in sub-Saharan Africa of 4.7.[186]327

Namibia conducts a census every ten years.328 After independence the first Population and Housing Census was carried out in 1991; further rounds followed in 2001, 2011, and 2023 (delayed two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic and financial constraints).[187]329 The data collection method is to count every person resident in Namibia on the census reference night, wherever they happen to be.330 This is called the de facto method.[188]331 For enumeration purposes the country is demarcated into 4,042 enumeration areas.332 These areas do not overlap with constituency boundaries to get reliable data for election purposes as well.[189]333

The 2011 Population and Housing Census counted 2,113,077 inhabitants.334 Between 2001 and 2011 the annual population growth was 1.4%, down from 2.6% in the previous ten-year period.[190]335 In 2023, the Namibia Statistics Agency conducted another census, which counted 3,022,401 inhabitants.[191]336

Ethnic groups

Namibia has many ethnic groups.[3]337 The majority of the Namibian population is made of Bantu and Khoisan peoples.338 The Bantu groups include the Owambo, Herero, Kavango, Lozi, Tswana and Himba peoples.339 The Khoisan groups encompass the Damara, Nama, and San peoples.340 There is also a mixed ancestry population consisting of Coloureds (2.1%) and Basters (1.5%).[3]341 There is a substantial Chinese minority in Namibia; it stood at 40,000 in 2006.[192]342

Whites (being mainly of Afrikaner, German, British and Portuguese origin) make up 1.8% of the population.343 Although their proportion of the population decreased after independence due to emigration and lower birth rates, they still form the second-largest population of European ancestry, both in terms of percentage and actual numbers, in Sub-Saharan Africa (after South Africa).[3]344 The majority of Namibian whites and nearly all those who are of mixed race speak Afrikaans and share similar origins, culture, and religion as the white and coloured populations of South Africa.345 A large minority of whites (around 30,000) trace their family origins back to the German settlers who colonised Namibia prior to the South African invasion during the First World War, and they maintain German cultural and educational institutions.346 Nearly all Portuguese settlers came to the country from the former Portuguese colony of Angola.[193]347 The 1960 census reported 526,004 persons in what was then South West Africa, including 73,464 whites (14%).[194]348

Education

Main article: Education in Namibia

See also: List of schools in Namibia

Namibia has free education for both primary and secondary education levels.349 Grades 1–7 are primary level, grades 8–12 are secondary.350 In 1998, there were 400,325 Namibian students in primary school and 115,237 students in secondary schools.351 The pupil-teacher ratio in 1999 was estimated at 32:1, with about 8% of the GDP being spent on education.352 Curriculum development, educational research, and professional development of teachers is centrally organised by the National Institute for Educational Development (NIED) in Okahandja.[195]353 Among sub-Saharan African countries, Namibia has one of the highest literacy rates.[196]354 According to CIA World Factbook, as of 2018 91.5% of the population age 15 and over can read and write.[196]355

Most schools in Namibia are state-run, but there are some private schools, which are also part of the country's education system.356 There are four teacher training universities, three colleges of agriculture, a police training college, and three universities: University of Namibia (UNAM), International University of Management (IUM) and Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST).357 Namibia was ranked 91st in the Global Innovation Index in 2025.[197][198]358

Religion

Main article: Religion in Namibia

The Christian community makes up 80%–90% of the population of Namibia, with at least 75% being Protestant, of which at least 50% are Lutheran.359 Lutherans are the largest religious group, a legacy of the German and Finnish corpus missionary work during the country's colonial times.[32]360 10%–20% of the population hold indigenous beliefs.[199]361

Missionary activities during the second half of the 19th century resulted in many Namibians converting to Christianity.362 Today most Christians are Lutheran, but there also are Roman Catholic, Methodist, Anglican, African Methodist Episcopal, and Dutch Reformed.363

Islam in Namibia is subscribed to by about 9,000 people,[200] many of them Nama.[201]364 Namibia is home to a small Jewish community of about 100 people.[202]365

Groups such as the Latter-day Saints and Jehovah's Witnesses are also present in the country.366

Languages

Main article: Languages of Namibia

The majority of Namibians can speak and understand English.367 Up to 1990, English, German, and Afrikaans were official languages.368 Long before Namibia's independence from South Africa, SWAPO was of the opinion that the country should become officially monolingual, choosing this approach in contrast to that of its neighbour South Africa (which granted all 12 of its major languages official status), which it saw as "a deliberate policy of ethnolinguistic fragmentation."[203]369 Consequently, SWAPO instituted English as Namibia's sole official language, though only 2.3% of the population speaks it as a home language, but understood by most generally.370 Its implementation is focused on the civil service, education and the broadcasting system, especially the state broadcaster NBC.[204]371 Some other languages have received semi-official recognition by being allowed as medium of instruction in primary schools.372 Private schools are expected to follow the same policy as state schools, and "English language" is a compulsory subject.[204]373 Some critics argue that, as in other postcolonial African societies, the push for monolingual instruction and policy has resulted in a high rate of school drop-outs and of individuals whose academic competence in any language is low.[205]374