Namibia’s economy is steadily expanding, with new businesses, services and markets emerging across sectors. Yet, beneath this growth lies a persistent and uncomfortable truth: consumer protection has not kept pace. While a number of regulatory bodies exist, their mandates are often too narrow, their reach too limited, and their enforcement too weak to adequately safeguard...
There is only a week and a few days left before Namibia’s roads grow busy again. The month of May, with its cluster of public holidays, traditionally brings movement — families travelling to reunite, workers taking well-earned breaks, and long-distance buses ferrying passengers from Windhoek to the north, south and the coast. It is a...
This week’s State of the Nation Address (Sona) by President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah offered something that has often been missing in recent years: a grounded, measurable account of where Namibia stands economically, and more importantly, where it is going. At a time when the countdown to Vision 2030 has entered its final stretch, the address struck...
Yesterday morning, scenes unfamiliar to many Namibians unfolded across Windhoek and beyond. Long queues snaked through service stations, tempers simmered, and uncertainty hung in the air. Some fuel outlets even cordoned off their forecourts with cones, citing empty tanks. By afternoon, government had stepped in, warning service stations against withholding fuel in anticipation of a...
With tensions flaring in the Middle East as major powers like the United States, Israel, and Iran involved, Namibia is once again bracing for the knock-on effects. And for most Namibians, this isn’t just about geopolitics or strategy, it’s about whether ordinary consumers will still afford to get to work and afford to fill up...
As Namibia marks 36 years of independence, the conversation must move beyond commemoration to reflection. This is not only where the country comes from, but more importantly, where it is going. At 36, Namibia remains a youthful democracy. Yet, when placed alongside many African nations that gained independence decades earlier, its progress is both notable...
The government’s decision to redirect funds currently used for private medical care under the Public Service Employees Medical Aid Scheme (PSEMAS) to the public health system is a bold policy move. In principle, strengthening the public healthcare system so that it can adequately serve government employees is not a bad idea. In fact, it could...
War isn’t just something the United States of America (USA) wages overseas. It has become an entrenched aspect of that country’s foreign policy, domestic economic production and employment. This extraordinary pattern of perpetual conflict by the USA is not incidental. It has become woven into the very fabric of American economic life because for the...
As government tables a budget anchored on restoring balance between ambition and affordability, one provision stands out not as a revenue grab, but as a pragmatic instrument of fiscal repair: the Tax Amnesty Programme. Launched in 2017 and extended at various stages, the programme now carries a firm deadline of 31 October 2026. Extensions will...
Two articles that appeared in New Era yesterday paint a troubling picture of our correctional system — one that cannot be solved by the police and judiciary alone. Severe staff shortages and overcrowding at the Namibia Correctional Service facilities, particularly in Windhoek, were laid bare. In a separate report, safety and security minister Lucia Iipumbu...