Promoting Sustainable and Inclusive Prosperity in Namibia
The Growth Lab has been working with the Government of Namibia since 2020 on a project to disentangle the factors that inform Namibia’s economic prospects. The research outputs of this initiative may in turn contribute to the policymaking process in the country and inform policymakers abroad facing similar issues.
The project covers a wide range of research activities, including but not limited to: understanding the drivers of macroeconomic sustainability, diagnosing the constraints to growth and identifying the most binding structural barriers preventing Namibia from realizing sustainable growth and diversification opportunities, studying inequality and labor market dynamics across the country, and analyzing the economic and export diversification opportunities by applying the framework of complexity analysis.
A generation into independence, Namibia displays significant progress towards long-term development. The country has made strides in overcoming a legacy of exclusion, biases in the development of state capabilities and access to public goods. Namibia has also established public institutions that increased civic engagement and participation; and achieved significant socio-political stability.
More About this Project
Namibia registered positive economic growth every year since its Independence in 1990, with the sole exception of 1993. In terms of GDP per capita, the first decade (1990-2000) recorded a moderately positive rate of growth (1.4% CAGR), but between 2000-2015, Namibia embarked upon a rapid growth acceleration, outperforming its African peers with an average annualized rate of growth per capita of 3.1%. During these fifteen years, poverty rates halved, and Namibia closed its income gap with South Africa by 45%, going from an income gap of 36% in 2000 to 20% in 2015. Household consumption per capita echoed the growth acceleration and expanded at a similar pace as GDP per capita. The growth acceleration was driven by the global commodity super cycle – which translated into favorable terms of trade, an investment boom in the mining industry, and exports coming from that sector.
However, by 2015, many of the factors behind the acceleration started to wane. The external shock of falling commodity prices, compounded with a plummeting of investment and a push for fiscal consolidation, leading to an overall contraction– Namibia contracted by 2.1% on average between 2015-2019.
By this point, at the beginning of 2020, Namibia was facing three concurrent structural challenges: reigniting economic growth, achieving a path towards fiscal sustainability, and effectively promoting pathways to opportunity for all its citizens. Onto this stage came the global pandemic of COVID-19, which only amplified these challenges and exposed the vulnerabilities in the economy.
The collaboration between the Growth Lab and the Government of Namibia aims to provide research-based inputs and active policy support that can inform policy approaches to address these structural challenges in an holistic fashion, in the global context of the post COVD-19 economic trends.
Tools & Visual Stories
- Country Profile
- Industry Targeting Dashboard
- Industrial Ecosystems of Port Cities
- Port Resiliency in the Face of Global Shocks
Harboring Opportunity: The Industrial Ecosystems of Port Cities
While we often think about ports as gateways for transporting goods and materials across cities, countries, and continents, it is also relevant to ask: how do ports play a role in shaping their local economies? In this visual story, we explore how port cities can capitalize on their productive strengths to develop other industries.
Port Resiliency in the Face of Global Shocks: The Case of Walvis Bay in Namibia
The Port of Walvis Bay in Namibia depends in part on its connectedness to inland markets and is, therefore, vulnerable to shocks affecting those markets. In this visual story, we show how the port can improve its economic resilience by capitalizing on global developments in clean energy technologies and the closeness to mining operations in the region.
Namibia's Industry Targeting Dashboard
This custom-made industry targeting tool allows users to explore the viability and benefit of any product or industry in comparison with Namibia’s current productive capabilities and comparative advantages. The tool is designed for use by government and non-government entities that seek to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) to Namibia to accelerate economic development.
Atlas of Economic Complexity Country Profile
Namibia is an upper-middle-income country, ranking as the 81st richest economy per capita out of 133 studied. It ranks as the 92nd most complex country in the Economic Complexity Index (ECI) ranking. Compared to a decade prior, Namibia's economy has become more complex, improving 7 positions in the ECI ranking. Moving forward, Namibia is positioned to take advantage of few opportunities to diversify its production using its existing knowhow.
Development Talks / Seminars
Spotlight
Diagnosing Economic Woes and Helping Develop Cures
Our work in Namibia was highlighted in this Harvard Kennedy School Magazine feature story about the origins of the Growth Lab and our approach to economic growth. A photographer accompanied our researchers during a trip to Windhoek and the Omahenene region in northern Namibia as they met with senior government officials, smallholder farmers, and manufacturers.
Photo: Research Fellows Nikita Taniparti and Andres Fortunato meet with merchants at open-air market in Namibia.
Student Intern Blogs
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