Global news and insight for corporate financial professionals
Browse additional economic indicators and data sets, selected by Global Finance editors, to learn more about Namibia economic outlook, debt to GDP ratio, international trade performance and population trends. Rankings of Namibia best banks and safest banks are also available.
Namibia’s fortunes may be about to change dramatically, as recent surveys have shown its offshore geology could rival the biggest oil discoveries of recent years. But even without its oil prospects, Namibia has quietly established itself as an attractive investment destination. A recent Bloomberg Markets study placed Namibia among the world’s 20 most attractive emerging markets from an investment standpoint.
USD 1.7 billion (2015)
International Monetary Fund (IMF), data retrieved January 2017
USD 10.9 billion (2017, estimate)
Intl$ 29.1 billion (2017, estimate)
| 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 |
| 4% | 3.7% | 2.7% | 0.3% | 6% | 5.1% | 5.1% |
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015* | 2016* | 2017* | ||
| 5.7% | 6.5% | 5.3% | 4.2% | 5.3% |
*Estimate
| 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2017* |
| N/A | 0.02% | 0.02% | 0.02% | 0.02% |
*Estimate
(2016 estimate)
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015* | 2016* | 2017* |
| 5.6% | 5.3% | 3.4% | 6.6% | 6.0% |
*Estimate
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
*Estimate
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* | 2017* |
| 23.2% | 23.6% | 33.7% | 42% | 46.9% |
*Estimate
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* | 2017* |
| -3.2% | -5.9% | -8.1% | -9.2% | -8.3% |
*Estimate
Standard & Poor's: N/A
Moody's: Baa3
Standard & Poor's / Moody's (Updated January 2017)
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
-6.9% (2017 estimate)
44.1% (2015)
0.02% (2015)
0.02% (2015)
Diamonds, copper, gold, zinc, lead, uranium; cattle, white fish and mollusks
Foodstuffs; petroleum products and fuel, machinery and equipment, chemicals
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| USD 801 million | USD 432 million | USD 1,078 million |
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| USD 13 million | USD 58 million | USD -55 million |
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
N/A
N/A
Economies are ranked on their ease of doing business. A high ease of doing business ranking means the regulatory environment is more conducive to the starting and operation of a local firm.
Overall ranking: 108 out of 190 countries (2017)
Subcategories:
Starting a business: 170 out of 190 countries
Enforcing Contracts: 98 out of 190 countries
Registering Property: 174 out of 190 countries
Getting Credit: 62 out of 190 countries
Protecting Minority Investors: 81 out of 190 countries
Trading Across Borders: 127 out of 190 countries
Paying Taxes: 74 out of 190 countries
Dealing with Construction Permits: 67 out of 190 countries
Getting Electricity: 124 out of 190 countries
Resolving Insolvency: 97 out of 190 countries
84 out of 138 countries
(2016-2017)
Ranking: 81 / Score: 61.85 (Moderately free) (2016)
(100=totally free 0=totally repressed)
Oshiwambo languages 48.9%, Nama/Damara 11.3%, Afrikaans 10.4% (common language of most of the population and about 60% of the white population), Otjiherero languages 8.6%, Kavango languages 8.5%, Caprivi languages 4.8%, English (official) 3.4%, other African languages 2.3%, other 1.7%
Note: Namibia has 13 recognized national languages, including 10 indigenous African languages and 3 Indo-European languages (2011 est.)
Christian 80% to 90% (at least 50% Lutheran), indigenous beliefs 10% to 20%
| 1990 | 2000 | 2010* | 2016* | 2021* |
| 1.345 million | 1.828 million | 2.085 million | 2.3 million | 2.397 million |
*Estimate
| 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2015 |
| 18% | 25% | 32% | 47% |
Total population: 81.9%
Male: 79.2%
Female: 84.5% (2015 est.)
(age 15 and over can read and write)
Political Rights: 2
Civil Liberties: 2 (2017)
(1 represents the most free, 7 the least free rating)
Fixed 7.63% Mobile 106.58% (2015)
(fixed-telephone subscribers and mobile-cellular subscribers)