Namibia

With a population of 3.1 million people, Namibia is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. It is geographically large country with a land mass of 823,290km2, a 1,500km-long coastline on the South Atlantic. It has a GDP US15.1bn which is expected to grow by 2.7 percent in 2026 and inflation is at 3.9%. It shares borders with Angola, Botswana, South Africa and Zambia. Namibia is rich in mineral resources, including diamonds and uranium. Its currency is the Namibian Dollar which is pegged to the South African Rand.

Namibia is a politically stable southern African country on the Atlantic coast that is largely desert. The official language is English, and some other languages spoken are Ovambo, Nama, Afrikaans, Otjiherero and Kavango.

The performance of Namibia’s economy is significantly affected by the performance of the mining sector. The World Bank in January 2026 forecast that Namibia would grow by 3.5% in 2026 and 3.8% in 2027. It estimates that the economy grew by 3.1% in 2025 and by 3.7% in 2024. Diamond exports play a big role in the country’s economy, but declined to 8% of GDP in 2024, from 11% in 2024 as sales have come under pressure from lab-grown diamonds and declining consumer demand. The value of diamond mining production is projected to decline by 4.5% in 2025 and 5.7% in 2026, according to the Bank of Namibia’s August 2025.

Economic Outlook. Namibia’s finance minister Ericah Shafudah called for diversification from diamonds in her budget speech in March 2025. Uranium and gold exports accounted for 8.2% and 5.8% of GDP in 2024, up from 6.3% and 5.1% in 2023, respectively.

Namibia is considered one of the safer countries in Africa for tourists, with well-maintained roads and infrastructure. Overall, Namibia offers a unique blend of natural beauty, wildlife, and cultural experiences that make it a compelling destination for travellers seeking adventure and exploration.

After a number of large oil and gas discoveries in the past few years, Namibia has become an exploration hotspot. Numerous companies, including multinational oil companies like United States (US)-based Chevron Corporation and Exxon Mobil Corporation, Qatar Energy, British company Shell and French company TotalEnergies, are involved in exploration for oil and gas onshore and offshore, which has already contributed to economic growth. Analysts estimate the amount of recoverable oil and gas in Namibia is 10 billion barrels (Bb) of oil equivalent that could support peak production of 0.7 million barrels per day (Mb/d), with more discoveries likely to occur. Namibia could become the fifth-largest oil producer in Africa by the middle of the next decade. However, the distance from shore and water depth where some wells are located, the high percentage of natural gas in reservoirs, and low rock permeability in some wells are some of the challenges experienced by companies searching for oil and gas in Namibia.

Portuguese company Galp Energia holds an 80% stake in PEL 83 in the Orange Basin and has local partners Namcor and private company Inter Oil, each with a 10% interest. Early in 2024, the companies discovered oil and gas in their Mopane-1X exploration well. After also drilling the Mopane-2X well, they estimated in April 2024 that the Mopane field could contain about 10Bb of oil in place. In November and December 2024, Galp announced discoveries of oil and gas in the Mopane-1A and Mopane-2A wells that were drilled as part of its appraisal programme.

In the late 19th century, the region was colonised by Germany as South West Africa, and resistance to German rule was followed by the genocide of Herero and Namaqua people between 1904 and 1907, for which Germany formally apologised in 2004. In 2023 Germany agreed to pay reparations of US$1.2bn over thirty years.

Namibia is a desert country and the driest country in sub-Saharan Africa. It is rich in wildlife and in northern Namibia, German scientists discovered a fresh-water aquifer 300 metres below the surface containing roughly 5 billion cubic metres of potable water, which estimates suggest could supply the north of the country for 400 years at current rates of consumption.

Namibia produces copper, diamonds, dimension stone, gold, iron ore, lead, limestone, lithium, manganese, salt, semi-precious stones, silver, tantalum, tin, uranium and zinc, and contains unexploited deposits of cobalt, fluorspar, graphite, nickel, phosphate, rare earth elements and vanadium. It is Africa’s largest producer of uranium, second largest producer of salt, after Tunisia, the fourth largest producer of lead, after Nigeria, Morocco, and South Africa, the fourth largest producer of tin, after Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Nigeria and Rwanda, and the fourth largest producer of zinc, after South Africa, Eritrea, and Burkina Faso.


Sources: Who Owns Whom sector reports, CIA Factbook, African Development Bank, World Bank, Trading Economics, African Statistical Yearbook and IMF. ?>