Public Private Partnerships - Case of Namibia

Public–private partnerships in Namibia are one feature of the growing economic landscape since independence was declared in the 1990s. Despite the boom in mining industry ventures, the fiscal deficit is growing and living standards remain inadequate in localised areas. PPPs are increasingly sought after for wider social objectives. The World Bank will support Namibia in a Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) to achieve its Fourth National Development Plan that centralises development of state capacity and the private sector. The dedicated Development Bank of Namibia (DBN) provides funding for infrastructural projects completed by local or state-owned enterprises together with private companies, including direct loans for PPP enterprises. The DBN CEO, Martin Inkumbi, said that public–private partnerships need to be further developed with regard to revenue streams for projects that go beyond initial capital projections. 

 

There is still a degree of resistance to private sector involvement in public services, with concerns over how employment would be affected and how black and gender empowerment could be incorporated into such schemes, however, this is changing as it becomes clear that private sector participation in infrastructure services is necessary for economic growth. Since independence, private finance has been injected into telecoms, power and port expenditure, while large investments in mining, smelting and refining infrastructure have mostly been funded by multinationals.

 

Examples of public–private participation are growing, they include energy projects, mining, desalination, mobile telecommunications and the Targeted Intervention Programme for Employment and Economic Growth (Tipeeg). The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) has funded more than NAD3 million on public–private partnerships in Namibia with three current private partners – NamPost Savings Bank, Pupkewitz Megabuild and BFS Nampro Fund Manager. Development achieved via public–private