When people think about business success, they often think about financial results, growth and market performance. These remain important measures of success, but they tell only part of the story.
Today, there is growing recognition that long-term success is also reflected in the value created for people, communities and society, and in the opportunities it creates for individuals and businesses to thrive.
The Capricorn Group Social Value Report 2026 tells the story of how business success can create shared value, strengthen communities and expand opportunities for people to thrive.
The report, launched this month, provides a transparent account of how Capricorn Group, its subsidiaries and the Capricorn Foundation are working together to create positive change across Namibia and Botswana.
During the financial year from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026, the group invested N$29.3 million in corporate social investment and sponsorship initiatives focused on education, community wellbeing, economic participation, sport and sustainable development.
More importantly, the report shows how purposeful partnerships can turn investment into real opportunities for people, families and communities. Yet this report is about far more than the amount invested.
As Capricorn Foundation executive director Marlize Horn puts it, social value is about “people, partnerships and possibilities”. It is about what becomes possible when communities, government institutions, organisations and like-minded partners come together to respond to real needs and create opportunities that last.
At the heart of this approach is a simple belief that lasting progress is built together. Many of the challenges facing communities today are too complicated for any one organisation to address alone.
Real progress happens when people, organisations and communities come together around a shared purpose, building trusted relationships and working collaboratively to create a better future for all.
This is the role the Capricorn Foundation strives to fulfil.
Beyond providing funding, it brings together the people, resources and partnerships needed to make a lasting difference.
By connecting community needs with trusted partners, ideas with resources, and skills with opportunity, the foundation helps create the conditions in which sustainable solutions can take root, grow and continue delivering value over time.
The power of these partnerships can be seen in communities across Namibia. By 2026, Capricorn Foundation-supported initiatives were providing daily or weekly meals to 11 392 people. Nutrition programmes reached 3 000 malnourished children, while 300 backyard and community gardens helped strengthen food security.
Around 35 000 children benefited from early childhood development support and learning resources, while hundreds of artisans and young people gained access to skills development and vocational training opportunities that can help shape their futures.
Education continues to play a central role in the group’s commitment to creating social value.
Twenty-five percent of group-wide corporate social investment was directed towards education initiatives, reflecting a belief that long-term social and economic progress begins when young people are given the opportunity to learn, grow and realise their potential.
Across the group, investments supported classroom development, teacher training, learning materials and vocational skills development opportunities.
Creating meaningful change is a collective effort and every part of the group contributes to this shared purpose.
During the year, the Capricorn Foundation invested N$14.1 million in programmes focused on education, economic advancement, vulnerability, health and sustainability across all 14 regions of Namibia. Since its establishment in 2020, the foundation has invested N$56.7 million in community initiatives. Bank Windhoek invested N$9.65 million in community programmes, while Bank Gaborone, Capricorn Asset Management and Entrepo continued to expand the group’s impact through their own partnerships and initiatives.
As the social investment landscape continues to evolve, there is growing recognition that impact cannot be measured by numbers alone. While reach remains important, greater emphasis is being placed on understanding what has changed in people’s lives, what progress can be sustained and where new opportunities can be created.
The focus is increasingly shifting from counting activities to understanding the lasting difference they make.
According to James Chapman, managing director of Bank Windhoek, this reflects the principle that when business success contributes to social progress, the value created extends well beyond financial returns. It reaches classrooms, clinics, farms, homes and communities, helping to strengthen confidence, dignity and resilience while creating opportunities for people to participate more in the economy.
Looking ahead, the group’s ambition is not simply to do more, but to increase the impact of what it does.
This means strengthening partnerships, supporting sustainable solutions and investing in initiatives that can continue creating value long after the initial investment has been made.
For the Capricorn Group, the true measure of social value lies not only in what is invested today, but in what becomes possible tomorrow.
Every partnership formed, every opportunity created and every life positively impacted contributes to a stronger foundation for future generations.
By working together with purpose, we can create lasting change that strengthens communities, expands opportunity and helps more people build better futures for themselves and those who follow.
– Marlize Horn, Capricorn Foundation
