FROM THE NAMA people’s early metalwork to Dutch-era prospecting, Namaqualand’s mining towns have a rich history, while today’s travellers still need a comfortable bed between Windhoek and Cape Town. Namaqualand’s copper belt has shaped towns, travel routes and livelihoods for…

Namibia will celebrate International Workers’ Day tomorrow. There will be speeches and sloganeering, but if the day is only a ritual on the calendar, we miss what it is really for: taking stock of the everyday bargain that keeps workplaces…

The old saying ‘no man is an island’ is as relevant today as it was four centuries ago. First penned by the English poet and clergyman John Donne in ‘Devotions Upon Emergent Occasion’ in 1624, the phrase reminds us that…

There Are Always three sides to a story: yours, mine and the truth. That reality underscores the important of keeping an open mind – whether mediating disputes, listening to differing viewpoints, or shaping economic policy and programme interventions. Sound decisions,…

THE GLOBAL ECONOMY is gripped by panic, with prophets of doom predicting dire consequences and no country expected to be spared from the negative impact of the rapid rise in oil prices. Opportunists have seized this opportunity to make extra…

April is known for several major religious events, including Easter, Passover and usually, the conclusion of Ramadan. Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, marks the period in which the Qur’an was revealed to the prophet Muhammad. For Muslims…

NAMIBIAN ENTREPRENEURS FACE significant challenges that demand resilience and strategic planning. These include complex regulatory and compliance requirements, limited access to finance in a collateral-driven lending environment, skills shortages, a small domestic market and high operating costs. The regulatory landscape…

Although Namibia’s public sector plays an important role in addressing unmet societal needs, performance often falls short in terms of impact, cost efficiency, and long-term sustainability. The public and private sectors serve distinct but interconnected functions. The public sector, comprising…

ACCORDING TO A baseline study on informal settlements conducted by the Namibia Statistics Agency, chief executive Alex Shimuafeni reports that more than 200 000 Namibians currently reside in the country’s 419 informal settlements. In addition to this urban residential informality,…

Supporting entrepreneurs and fostering an enterprise culture across Namibia’s 14 administrative regions motivated the founding of SMEs Compete. This has always been, and continues to be, the core purpose of our social entrepreneurship organisation. Midway through the implementation of a…

Entrepreneurship is a long-term journey. Many entrepreneurs start as home-based informal ventures before transitioning to the formal sector and growing into small, medium, or even large enterprises. Despite often being overlooked, the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector remains…