Namibia’s only regulated friendly society’s investments have increased to N$2.9 million.
The investment portfolio grew by 8.3% during the year, according to the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority’s 2026 annual report.
The society’s main business is providing burial-related financial benefits to members and their dependants.
“The friendly societies industry, which comprised a single friendly society, remained financially sound in 2025,” Namfisa says.
The regulator adds that “its assets were significantly more than its liabilities and it held sufficient cash and cash equivalents to settle obligations when they became due”.
At the end of the financial year, the society covered 2 048 beneficiaries, including 630 principal members and 1 418 dependants.
The number of beneficiaries increased by 2% to 2 048.
Namfisa reports that “the total number of active beneficiaries increased by 2% to 2 048 as at 31 December 2025 on account of new members enrolling in the society”.
The increase follows several years of lower membership numbers.
The total number of beneficiaries declined from 2 217 in 2021 to 2 003 in 2022, before rising to 2 019 in 2023 and 2 007 in 2024.
By the end of 2025, the number had recovered to 2 048, although it remained below the 2021 level.
The latest figures show that the society serves more than twice as many dependants as principal members.
Despite the increase in membership, total contributions declined by 1.7% to N$211 920 in 2025.
Claims expenditure, meanwhile, fell by 8.8% to N$85 000, which the regulator attributed to fewer burial claims.
The society also faced higher operating costs.
According to Namfisa, “operational expenses rose by 17.8% to N$71 131, driven by regulatory levies, audit, actuarial, and trustee-related costs”.
The friendly society sector recorded no consumer complaints during the 2025 reporting period, according to the information presented in Namfisa’s report.
This contrasts with other parts of the non-bank financial sector, where consumers have raised complaints about financial products and services.
Namfisa also places the society under Stage 1 of its Ladder of Supervisory Intervention, a category described as having “No significant problems”.
The classification indicates that the regulator did not identify significant supervisory problems warranting a higher level of intervention at the time of its assessment.
