The Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), together with the Bank of Namibia and FinMart, is launching the Namibia Financial Inclusion Survey today at the Namibia Institute for Public Administration and Management (NIPAM). This is a survey of how individuals generate their income and how they manage their financial lives. It also includes individuals’ engagement with the financial services sector as a whole. The financial sector in this sense includes both formal and informal products and services. The Financial Inclusion Survey also provides insight into attitudes and perceptions regarding money management, financial products and services, as well as information regarding demographics and overall lifestyles.
The 2017, Namibia Financial Inclusion Survey (NFIS) is the fourth of its kind to be conducted in Namibia, albeit, the first for the NSA. The first three financial inclusion surveys were conducted in 2004, 2007 and 2011 respectively, through the FinScope survey of FinMark Trust, an independent trust based in South Africa. The 2017 survey was conducted in all 14 regions of Namibia with funding from the Bank of Namibia and the World Bank Group as well as technical assistance from FinMark Trust of South Africa.
Face-to-face interviews were conducted during the month of October and November 2017 and a total of 1 863 persons were interviewed. The specific objectives, amongst others, were to measure the levels of financial inclusion, to describe the landscape of access to products and services, to identify the drivers of, and barriers to the usage of financial products and services, and to track and compare results and provide an assessment of changes and reasons thereof.
The report will provide a snapshot on the financial sector service in Namibia, looking at the banking industry, non-banking financial institutions as well as savings and credit co-operatives. Findings of the report will incorporate the demographic and household characteristics of respondents, provide details about livelihoods, financial capability, day-to-day money management, financial inclusion and of course on usage of financial products. This report is available in hard copy from the NSA and electronically through our website and mobile statistics application. We would like to recommend everyone to get themselves a copy.
Statistical collection remains important and cannot be achieved alone by the NSA. The Agency therefore wishes to express its sincere gratitude and appreciation for all the support received from various stakeholders in conducting this survey, including many institutions of the financial sector who formed part of the steering committee and the media. Our appreciation also goes to all households and members of the public who participated in the survey as well as the regional and local leaders for their support and cooperation to ensure that the importance of the survey was explained to their respective communities. Our mandate is indeed geared towards providing statistics for development and we appreciate the role played in it by the nation.
In that same vein, we would like to take this opportunity to inform the nation that from mid-September to mid-October 2018, we will be conducting the 2018 Namibia Labour Force Survey throughout the entire width and breadth of the country. There are various facts, as well as assumptions, about the labour market of our country. In order to always be statistically accurate, the nation is urged to participate and provide accurate statistics. Only through such teamwork can we have statistics that are geared towards development. In the meantime, acquaint yourself with all of our statistics by getting yourself our Statistical Mobile App. It is for free.
Iipumbu Sakaria is the Manager for Corporate Communications at the Namibia Statistics Agency