Economy struggles in 2005

THE year 2005 was not a good year in terms of development, as the Namibian economy slowed and grew at a slower pace than previously.

This was in tandem with global economic developments, with output growth expected to have decreased to 4,3 per cent last year from 5,1 per cent of 2004. The causes for the sluggish performance of the local economy were attributed to number of factors including poor performance of the fishing and mining sectors; and also the transport and communication sectors due to increases in fuel prices.The economy is said to have grown by around 3,2 per cent last year – a figure the central bank says is too low for any meaningful development to take place.The exact figure is yet to be announced.In the annual Bank of Namibia report for last year released by the BoN Governor, Tom Alweendo, he was however optimistic that the economy would pick up slightly this year and do better than last year.”The year 2006 indicates good prospects for the Namibian economy, as the economy was projected to grow at a higher rate than in 2005.The growth in 2006 would be supported by the primary sector, mainly through an increased production in the mining sector.”He added that there were expected positive contributions from activities such as the refining of copper and zinc.Namibia last year experienced the lowest inflation since 1990, with an average of 2,3 per cent being registered in 2005 compared to 4,2 per cent in 2004.The local economy is expected to grow by four per cent this year, which Alweendo said was not enough for development.The Governor did not say what the desired growth rate should be, but the Namibian Economic and Policy Research Unit (Nepru) has said the economy needs to grow by more than nine per cent a year for Vision 2030 to be realised.In the whole sub-Saharan African region, economies are projected to record an average 5,9 per cent growth this year – the strongest since the early 1970s.The causes for the sluggish performance of the local economy were attributed to number of factors including poor performance of the fishing and mining sectors; and also the transport and communication sectors due to increases in fuel prices.The economy is said to have grown by around 3,2 per cent last year – a figure the central bank says is too low for any meaningful development to take place.The exact figure is yet to be announced.In the annual Bank of Namibia report for last year released by the BoN Governor, Tom Alweendo, he was however optimistic that the economy would pick up slightly this year and do better than last year.”The year 2006 indicates good prospects for the Namibian economy, as the economy was projected to grow at a higher rate than in 2005.The growth in 2006 would be supported by the primary sector, mainly through an increased production in the mining sector.”He added that there were expected positive contributions from activities such as the refining of copper and zinc.Namibia last year experienced the lowest inflation since 1990, with an average of 2,3 per cent being registered in 2005 compared to 4,2 per cent in 2004.The local economy is expected to grow by four per cent this year, which Alweendo said was not enough for development.The Governor did not say what the desired growth rate should be, but the Namibian Economic and Policy Research Unit (Nepru) has said the economy needs to grow by more than nine per cent a year for Vision 2030 to be realised.In the whole sub-Saharan African region, economies are projected to record an average 5,9 per cent growth this year – the strongest since the early 1970s.