BoN positive about Namibian growth prospects
The Namibian economy is showing signs of modest recovery and could perform better this year than the 1.1% growth recorded in 2016.
This is according to Bank of Namibia (BoN) governor Ipumbu Shiimi, who was speaking during an annual diplomatic stakeholders' engagement held in Windhoek on Tuesday.
According to Shiimi, there were more improvements this year compared to 2016 as commodity prices had improved lately and the drought that had affected the agricultural sector for the past three years had settled.
“In the economic outlook released in July, the Bank projected growth to average 2.1% in 2017 and 3.8% in 2018, largely due to improved growth in the agriculture, mining and electricity and water sectors,” he stated.
However, although commodity prices recovered during the first half of 2017, compared to the same period in 2016, uranium prices were still low because of a global oversupply and high inventories, Shiimi said.
He said this had dampened the optimism given the reliance of the Namibian economy on the mining industry.
Shiimi said for Namibia to realise high growth it needed to address structural issues in the economy. That would entail a diversification from the mining sector to other sectors that could build the productive capacity of the economy.
“This needs to happen while at the same time staying the course in terms of the ongoing government fiscal consolidation.”
The governor said Namibia had already identified a number of sectors, including turning the country into a logistics hub and re-organising the agricultural sector to create more jobs.
NAMPA
This is according to Bank of Namibia (BoN) governor Ipumbu Shiimi, who was speaking during an annual diplomatic stakeholders' engagement held in Windhoek on Tuesday.
According to Shiimi, there were more improvements this year compared to 2016 as commodity prices had improved lately and the drought that had affected the agricultural sector for the past three years had settled.
“In the economic outlook released in July, the Bank projected growth to average 2.1% in 2017 and 3.8% in 2018, largely due to improved growth in the agriculture, mining and electricity and water sectors,” he stated.
However, although commodity prices recovered during the first half of 2017, compared to the same period in 2016, uranium prices were still low because of a global oversupply and high inventories, Shiimi said.
He said this had dampened the optimism given the reliance of the Namibian economy on the mining industry.
Shiimi said for Namibia to realise high growth it needed to address structural issues in the economy. That would entail a diversification from the mining sector to other sectors that could build the productive capacity of the economy.
“This needs to happen while at the same time staying the course in terms of the ongoing government fiscal consolidation.”
The governor said Namibia had already identified a number of sectors, including turning the country into a logistics hub and re-organising the agricultural sector to create more jobs.
NAMPA
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