Namibia risks losing proposed US$300m film studio to Botswana

A film studio development reportedly valued at more than US$300 million could move to Botswana, nearly two years after the company behind the project applied for 115 hectares of land in Swakopmund.Executive producer Guy Nockels claimed the Swakopmund municipality has shown little interest in the project and that the company is considering withdrawing its application.The municipality disputes this, saying the applicant has yet to provide proof of funding.Desert Dunes Film Studios Namibia (Pty) Ltd, owned by Manks Productions Inc and Anton Communications Group Ltd of Canada and the Imwe Namibia Holdings Trust, applied in October 2024 for 115 hectares on the north-eastern edge of Swakopmund.The proposed development comprises four studios built to international standards, a film school, post-production and animation facilities, a back lot and a four-hectare solar farm.Nockels said construction would employ between 300 and 400 people over two to three years.Namibia does not have a large-scale, purpose-built film studio complex like the one Desert Dunes is proposing to build, with productions shot in the country largely relying on crew and facilities from elsewhere."At the moment, all the heads of departments come from South Africa or overseas," Nockels said."Once we have a studio, it'll attract more people, because we've got the facilities. They start training up Namibians," he added.Slow progress allegedIn January, Nockels wrote to the Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB) complaining about the lack of progress."We have yet to receive any concrete responses regarding our application," he wrote.A joint meeting involving the municipality and NIPDB followed on 10 February.On 23 February, Nockels submitted five questions, including the maximum amount of land that could be sold to a private enterprise, the price per square metre for unserviced land, the expected timeline for a decision and conditions attached to the development.After receiving no written response, he wrote again on 20 May."We find it totally unacceptable that we have not had any response to our requests, not even an acknowledgement of the mail that was sent to the 14 participants of the meeting," the letter stated."The lack of any interest in assisting us with the project is unbelievable in our current economic climate where the generating of employment is an important issue," he argued.Nockels said the company is now considering setting up the studio in Botswana instead, claiming the country is "extremely interested in the possibility of us moving [the project]”."We've lost our first round of investors because of time," he added.Municipality disputes claimsThe municipality rejected Nockels' account, saying it has engaged with the applicant since 2024 through a management committee presentation and five investment coordination committee discussions.It also referred the application to NIPDB for due diligence.Mpasi Haingura, general manager for corporate services, human capital and ICT at the municipality, said the applicant must provide proof of funding and meet the municipality's other requirements."We appreciate all investment proposals, but the applicant needs to demonstrate their commitment by complying to our requirements," he said.Council resolved on 2 October 2025 that no proof of financing was in place and cited a ministerial directive of 4 June 2015 instructing local authorities not to allocate large portions of land to a single entity.Nockels argued that financing cannot be finalised without knowing what the land will cost."The municipality has yet to provide any indication of the purchase price or valuation for the un-serviced land in question," he wrote in October last year.The municipality responded to his five questions on 21 July, five months after he submitted them.It asked Nockels to confirm the minimum area required for the studio, which it put at 20 hectares, while proposing that the back lot and solar farm be leased rather than purchased.It said it would undertake a valuation after payment of a N$100 000 deposit and that the land process could take up to three years.The land could not be used as security until ownership had been transferred, the municipality added.Five months to respondA council resolution of 25 April 2014 sets the maximum area that may be sold to a private enterprise at 5 000 square metres, or half a hectare.The municipality did not explain how a proposed 20-hectare sale would relate to that resolution but said it had a responsibility to manage the allocation of large portions of land carefully.The municipality also disputed the significance of the five-month gap between Nockels' questions and its written response, saying the issues had been addressed at the February meeting and that the July letter merely confirmed what had been discussed, including the 20-hectare proposal.Nockels rejected this."We never accepted 20 ha, as the last letter is the first time the size was mentioned," he said.Asked about the possibility of the project moving to Botswana, the municipality said: "The municipality has no agreement in place with Desert Dunes Film Studios Namibia (Pty) Ltd that would prevent the applicant from pursuing opportunities in other towns or countries."The municipality said the process could move forward once the applicant confirms the land required and pays the deposit.Nockels said the shareholders are expected to meet next week and that no decision has yet been taken on whether to withdraw the Swakopmund application.

Namibia risks losing proposed US$300m film studio to Botswana

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-21

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Namibia risks losing proposed US$300m film studio to Botswana

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-21

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