Namibia’s progress ‘paralysed’ by inaction, Aupindi warns

Swapo member of parliament Tobie Aupindi says Namibia’s biggest challenge is not a lack of policies, but a lack of action to address unemployment, poverty and economic inequality.

Speaking at a capacity-building workshop in Swakopmund on Monday, Aupindi, chairperson of the parliamentary standing committee on natural resources, said government institutions continue to produce reports and hold discussions while ordinary Namibians remain trapped in hardship despite the country’s natural wealth.

“We travel around the country, we produce reports, stakeholders attend these events, and yet we are not taking action," he said.

"We are actionless, we are emotionless. And for me, that is completely unacceptable because we analyse situations until we paralyse them.”

Aupindi said Namibia stands at a defining moment, with enormous deposits of diamonds, uranium, lithium, cobalt, rare earth minerals, oil and gas, as well as rich marine resources and renewable energy potential.

“Why are so many Namibians still struggling in the midst of such wealth? What are we doing so wrong that we sit on this natural wealth while Namibians continue to suffer?” he asked.

The parliamentarian said Namibia cannot continue to rely on an extractive economic system in which raw materials are exported while value addition and profits are generated elsewhere.

“Namibia must transition from being merely a supplier of raw materials to becoming a producer of finished and semi-finished products,” he said.

Aupindi argued that every tonne of lithium exported without local processing represents lost factories, lost jobs and lost industrial growth, while raw diamonds exported without beneficiation deny the country opportunities in manufacturing, polishing, jewellery production and skills development.

Think outside the box

He called for stronger beneficiation policies, including possible restrictions on the export of certain raw materials unless they are processed locally.

“For more than a century, many Namibians have watched multinational corporations dominate key sectors of the economy while local communities receive limited benefits,” he argued.

Aupindi also criticised what he termed “rented black faces”, saying symbolic representation is increasingly being used to create the appearance of empowerment while local communities remain excluded from meaningful economic participation.

“That has become the new normal. People are being used as symbolic representations, and then it is claimed that local communities have been empowered. That is unacceptable.”

He proposed that Namibia should begin receiving part of its mining dividends in physical commodities such as gold, uranium or lithium to build strategic national reserves and protect the country against inflation, market instability and future economic shocks.

“I am challenging us to think outside the box, beyond short-term revenues that may mean little tomorrow, and move toward long-term national sovereignty and intergenerational wealth preservation,” he said.

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