Political parties to hit N$1.6-billion jackpot

Political parties are projected to receive N$1.6 billion in state funding between 2020 and 2030.

This is according to research by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).

The institute on Thursday presented its new report on political finance transparency in Namibia, which shows that the country is falling behind global standards.

The N$1.6-billion figure is a 10-year projection for between 2020 and 2030, based on actual and predicted budget documents.

“This is an astronomical amount for a middle-income country such as Namibia, with high unemployment and poverty levels, to divert to political parties when there are pressing socio-economic needs to be fiscally prioritised,” Frederico Links, the author of the report, says.

Political parties receive funding from the state through the Electoral Act, which states that the amounts are governed by the minister of finance in accordance with the proportional representation of parties in the parliament.

This means the more seats a party has in the parliament, the greater the amount of funding it receives.

Parties also finance themselves through membership fees, foreign support, and other sources such as fundraisers and donations, the IPPR says.

Against this background, the IPPR report calls for greater transparency and a stronger regulatory system to ensure election outcomes are not affected by external interference.

Although the Electoral Act required parties to disclose funding and assets to the Electoral Commission of Namibia every year, there is no requirement for those disclosures to be available to the public.

Namibia does not limit government contractors from making political donations.

The IPPR calls for reforms that address Namibia’s current gaps to be implemented before the next elections.

“Having rigorous and robust political financing regulations in place is about building and maintaining trust in democracy, elections, politics and government,” Links says.

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