Namibia’s public service workforce has increased to almost 119 000 employees, which includes uniformed members from all arms of the country’s security cluster.
This could now see the government’s wage bill ballooning to over N$36 billion annually.
At least N$3.62 billion is paid on medical aid access and related benefits annually.
By the end of 2024, government offices, ministries, and agencies (OMAs) employed a cumulative 111 535 employees. This was disclosed by Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare on Monday, while addressing staff of the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM).
Ngurare was cognisant of the expanded public service workforce but demanded that the increased workforce should translate into improved and accelerated service delivery to Namibians.
He said that for as long as the increment in the public service workforce strikes a perfect balance of quality service delivery to all citizens over the workforce’s actual quantity, Namibians will have little to no problems.
“The total number of people on the Public Service Payroll as of 31 December 2025 was 118 936. This represents the workforce employed by the government to deliver services to the Namibian people. It is imperative as employees of government that we make it our patriotic duty to create opportunities for others, particularly the unemployed young professionals nationwide. The NDP 6, strategic plans and annual plans serve as the roadmaps for service delivery. I believe that these must be implemented with a focus on humanity rather than technicalities.
“The Office of the Prime Minister specifically is responsible for a critical NDP 6 objective, which is public service reform. Therefore, the daily, weekly, monthly and annual plans and functions of the OPM, with measurable targets, as stated in our 2025/2030 Strategic Plan, must bring together and coordinate the work of all OMAs, regional councils and local authorities, as well as State-owned enterprises, to work towards our common objectives,” underscored Ngurare.
He therefore called civil servants to work with urgency, humility and a sense of purpose on all fronts.
“You are the gears of the engine of State administration. You are the bridge between policies and people, between vision and reality. Without your active, ethical and capable participation, government cannot function effectively, nor will it deliver the required services to the nation.”
Going concern
The government’s bloating annual wage bill has for years remained a going concern, with President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah during last year’s address to public servants also cautioning that the public service wage bill was unsustainable. Like Ngurare on Monday, Nandi-Ndaitwah last year too warned against complacency amongst public servants, as she called on civil servants to embrace innovation, improve service delivery and operate within tightened fiscal limits. She also called for a renewed culture of accountability and purpose across all government institutions, as non-performance will carry consequences.