The generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity in Namibia recorded deflation of 24% during the second quarter compared to an increase of 2.9% obtained during the same period a year earlier. This was stated by the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) recently when revealing the Namibia Producer Price Index (PPI).
According to Alex Shimuafeni, the NSA’s CEO and Statistician General, the PPI is an important macro-economic indicator that measures the average change over time in the prices which domestic producers received for their products which exclude any taxes, transport, and trade margins that the purchaser may have to pay.
The annual percentage change of manufacturing for cement, lime, and plaster was stagnant during the second quarter of 2020 compared to a deflation of 10% recorded during the same quarter of 2019.
Shimuafeni stated that the water collection, treatment, and supply category’s annual percentage change remained stagnant during the second quarter of 2020 compared to 6% registered during the same period of 2019.
Furthermore, the government wage index, measuring the level of prices that government employees charge in exchange for their labour services, for the second quarter of 2020 increased by 0.9% compared to 1% of the corresponding quarter.
The Public Administration Index increased by 1.2% which is owed to the increase in the average wage that went up by 0.02%. This increase is reflected in the number of employees that declined during the period, thus pulling up the wage per worker.
The agency stated that the education index rose by 1.2% due to increased average wage as well. According to Shimuafeni, there are new employees in the sector that are employed at higher salary grades.
Meanwhile, the Health Index declined by 2.7% during the second quarter of 2020 due to the average wage that went down by 1.9%. Although the number of employees in the sector increased, those employed were mainly below the average wage that was recorded in the second quarter of 2019
– mndjavera@nepc.com.na
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