Lahja Nashuuta
Namibia has set an ambitious goal to bridge the digital divide in the country’s unserved and underserved areas by providing full access to network connections by 2030.
The government is also committed to enhancing its digital infrastructure and empowering marginalised citizens in an increasingly digital world.
This vision is outlined in the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology’s (ICT) 2025-2029 Strategic Plan, which is currently under review.
ICT minister Emma Theofelus in an interview with New Era said the strategic plan emphasises the country’s commitment to investing heavily in the deployment of network towers, as well as increasing network and internet coverage to 100% by 2030.
While acknowledging the progress made in digital penetration, the minister noted there is still much work to be done to achieve Vision 2030, and meet the targets outlined in the Swapo party manifesto regarding ICT.
The minister made these remarks during the ongoing ICT stakeholders’ engagement, which aims to foster dialogue between the government and stakeholders on crucial ICT sector development issues.
“We’re focusing on the digital economy and digital services, particularly service delivery for citizens and ensuring we’re prepared for emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning,” the minister noted.
Official figures revealed that 53% of Namibians currently have access to the internet, while 88.4% of the population is covered by 4G networks.
Many schools and health facilities in Namibia are within 4G network coverage, although there are still gaps. Of the 1 835 schools in the country, 456 have 4G coverage. Of the 452 health facilities, only 84 have access to the internet.
Theofelus emphasised the importance of using local human resources within the ministry and public enterprises to solve challenges and implement solutions, rather than relying on external consultants.
“We know the bottlenecks and challenges already. Now we need to come together to plan and implement the solutions outlined in our new strategic plan for the next five years,” she said. Despite the setbacks caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the ministry has made significant progress on the strategic plan.
The pandemic diverted time and resources, but the ministry managed to pass the Access to Information Act in 2022, which helped accelerate efforts.
“We’ve managed to review our broadband policy to increase speeds to 25 megabits per second, which we believe is still not enough, but it’s a step forward.
We’ve also been able to ensure that money is allocated to the Universal Service Access Fund to build network towers in areas where commercial operators are reluctant to go,” said Theofelus.
The minister expressed pride in the achievements made under the current strategic plan but emphasised that much more needs to be done, especially with the new plan, which aligns with the Namibian Development Plan NTP6 and the Swapo Party manifesto.
Meanwhile, Audrin Mathe, executive director of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, stressed the need for a holistic approach to address the digital divide in Namibia.
This includes affordable device distribution, investing in internet infrastructure, and providing digital literacy training.