Political analyst Natjirikasora Tjirera says Namibia has made notable progress in over 35 years since independence, particularly in providing free public health services and maintaining democratic institutions, but warned that serious challenges such as youth unemployment and a struggling education system could hinder the country’s long-term development.

Speaking in an interview on Namibia’s development journey, Tjirera said the country’s commitment to offering free health services to citizens remains one of its greatest achievements.

“The country’s consistent provision of free health services to the public is a great achievement. Despite the many challenges facing the health sector, a sick person knows they can go to a health facility and be treated even when they do not have money. That alone is a major milestone,” he said.

He also pointed to Namibia’s adherence to democratic and constitutional principles as another significant accomplishment since independence.

“Another important achievement is the adherence to democratic and constitutional imperatives like holding regular elections and respecting judicial decisions. The independence of the judiciary is something we should be proud of as a nation,” he said. 

However, Tjirera expressed concern about the state of Namibia’s education system, saying it is failing to produce the skills needed to address the country’s development challenges.

“Our education system is becoming a serious confusion, which, for some reason, is not producing solutions to society’s current problems. It does not seem to be goal-oriented, and it is almost as if it is just there for the fun of it,” he said.

He warned that the system currently produces more school dropouts than graduates, which he said should alarm policymakers and the public.

“It produces more dropouts than graduates and that should be a cause for concern for anyone. Without a proper and goal-oriented education system, Namibia’s development agenda will forever be compromised,” he said. 

Closely linked to the education challenge, he added, is the persistent problem of unemployment, particularly among young people.

“Youth unemployment remains a major issue. Unless the youth get employed and start contributing positively towards the economy, we can rest assured that the development agenda has not truly kicked off,” Tjirera said.

Commenting on the country’s political leadership, Tjirera said he did not expect significant policy shifts under President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah because the same political establishment remains in power.

“For some reason, some people expected a change in the leadership of President Ndaitwah. Truth be spoken, I did not expect any change because it is the very same party, with the same leadership and the same think tank governing,” he said.

He also criticised the practice commonly referred to as “tenderpreneurship”, where government contracts are allegedly exploited for personal gain.

“The Namibian government should realise that the legalised thieving called tenderpreneurship should be abolished as soon as yesterday,” he said.

According to Tjirera, government policies should focus more on job creation and ensure that the country’s natural resources benefit the broader population.

“We need a system which creates jobs for the youth and policies that dictate that this country’s natural resources are used for the greater good of the people and not a selected few,” he said.

He further argued that Namibia should reconsider its reliance on a private sector-driven economic model, suggesting that a stronger role for the state could help drive development.

“We need to move away from the myth that the private sector can develop Namibia. Namibia does not have a population that will sustain a private sector-based economy. We should reset and adopt a state-driven economy,” he said.

Tjirera added that Namibia’s natural resources should be used as a foundation for industrial growth and economic transformation.

“Our natural resources should be the catalyst for economic development. We should invest now in manufacturing goods that we need so that we can lessen our dependence on other countries and markets,” he said. 

He emphasised that achieving this goal will require placing the right people in key positions to drive development.

“We should seek to deploy the correct people in the correct positions to allow that to happen,” he said.