Namibians are ‘poorer and hungrier’

Landless People’s Movement (LPM) leader Bernadus Swartbooi says more Namibians are struggling financially and finding it increasingly difficult to put food on the table.“Namibians are poorer and hungrier than they were just three years ago. That's what the data from Cirrus Capital shows. Essentially, the middle class has collapsed,” he said at a mid-term budget review debate in the National Assembly last week.Swartbooi cited figures he attributed to Cirrus Capital indicating that 61.6% of Namibians earn less than N$2 000 a month, while 9.7% earn between N$11 000 and N$40 000 and only 2.6% earn N$40 000 or more.He argued that declining housing affordability, growing dependence on expensive credit and limited employment opportunities showed that government’s economic policies were failing ordinary Namibians.He also highlighted the Namibia Statistics Agency’s 2023 housing census, which he said showed that 63% of Namibians earned less than N$10 000 a month and 22% earned between N$10 000 and N$50 000.Although the income brackets differ between the two sets of figures, he argued that both illustrated deteriorating living conditions and the growing difficulty of securing affordable housing.He claimed that some nurses and teachers live in informal settlements, while employed Namibians are frequently forced to take on additional work simply to afford food for their children.The LPM leader said Namibia had entered a period of structural economic stagnation, which he attributed to unemployment, dependence on primary resources, limited economic diversification, a mismatch between available skills and employment opportunities, and high public debt.Borrowing boomHe also raised concerns about the growing reliance on micro-lenders, saying increased borrowing reflected financial desperation rather than improved access to credit.He cited figures showing that micro-lenders' loan portfolios had increased by 27% to N$9.3 billion during the second quarter of 2026, with approximately 279 500 borrowers.“Is it that Namibians are more and more desperate to get money for survival and are prepared to take more expensive money? Or is this positive competition in the financial services sector?” Swartbooi said.He suggested that micro-lenders’ more flexible lending requirements could be attracting borrowers unable to secure financing from commercial banks, while warning that increased lending did not necessarily reflect economic progress when many households were struggling to meet basic needs.Show the numbersSwartbooi also challenged government’s plans to spend nearly N$500 million on youth enterprises, demanding evidence that previous empowerment programmes had produced sustainable businesses and employment.Referring to figures presented during the 2020/21 budget debates, he said young people had accessed N$82.3 million in loans from the Development Bank of Namibia (DBN) and N$39 million from Agribank.Women received N$46 million from DBN and N$44 million from Agribank, while small and medium enterprises obtained N$155 million from DBN during the same period.“Today, we want to know what has happened to those beneficiaries and the loans they obtained, which the then finance minister was very happy about? Should programmes not lead to higher levels of gain from year-to-year? Why are livelihoods not improving at all?” he said.He disputed government projections that youth enterprises would create 7 000 jobs, saying no supporting evidence had been presented.Swartbooi cast doubt on Namibia's ability to attract investment, citing figures he attributed to the Bank of Namibia showing a decline from N$37.1 billion in 2024 to between N$30 billion and N$35 billion in 2025, followed by N$18 billion in 2026.He rejected the argument that international geopolitical tensions alone explained Namibia's economic difficulties.Turning to agriculture, Swartbooi criticised government's handling of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), saying restrictions were worsening farmers' financial difficulties.He described the N$179 million allocation towards FMD as inadequate and called for direct financial assistance to affected farmers and the reopening of livestock trading.Swartbooi also criticised the mid-term budget review as largely an exercise in transferring funds between government departments rather than addressing the underlying weaknesses of the economy.

Namibians are ‘poorer and hungrier’

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Namibian Sun 2026-11-03

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Namibians are ‘poorer and hungrier’

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Namibian Sun 2026-11-03

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