Windhoek Observer

Staff Writer  Rovos Rail says its tours to Namibia will continue despite a recent accident that claimed the lives of two crew members. The company said all services to Namibia remain operational and safety protocols remain in place. It operates about 10 train journeys from Namibia each year. The accident occurred on Sunday when a Rovos Rail train travelling southbound from Windhoek derailed at Naute, about 285km from Ariamsvlei near the South African border. The company said the incident was caused by a washaway of the last span of a bridge, which led to the loss of two locomotives and…

Staff Writer The Bank of Namibia (BoN) and the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (Namfisa) have signed an updated memorandum of agreement to strengthen cooperation in regulating and supervising the financial sector. The agreement sets out how the two regulators will share information, conduct joint supervision and coordinate oversight of banking institutions, financial institutions and intermediaries. At the same event, the institutions also formalised the terms of reference for a joint technical working group to support the development of financial technology in Namibia. The agreement provides for the exchange of information on key regulatory issues affecting institutions and groups. It…

Staff Writer Proflight Zambia has rolled out cashless payments across its operations, a move it says supports faster and safer transactions. The airline, which operates flights to Windhoek, introduced the system in November 2025 as part of a shift towards digital payments. Director of flight operations captain Josias Walubita said the change benefits both the airline and its customers.  “Going cashless strengthens the airline’s operations, enhances service excellence, and maintains a secure operating environment. At the same time, our customers enjoy greater convenience when paying for flights and services, with Proflight Zambia accepting card payments as well as mobile money…

De Beers has made one of the deepest ever cuts to its group of handpicked diamond buyers as the former monopoly grapples with a prolonged crisis roiling the industry, people with knowledge of the matter said. The company informed its customers, known as sightholders, on Friday whether they’d kept that status in a series of letters and follow-up calls, the people said, asking not to be identified as discussing confidential information. De Beers cut the number of buyers to between 45 and 50 from around 70, they said. De Beers declined to comment. The storied diamond miner has been mulling…

Wandile Sihlobo  As the conflict in the Middle East continues, the farming community in South Africa is increasingly worried about rising input costs, particularly fertiliser and fuel. On both, the issue is not that South Africa has a supply constraint but fear about the path ahead. Others are also worried about the impact of these developments on consumer food prices. What follows are broad views on how we should approach these issues. First, we don’t have a fertiliser supply issue for now, but prices are rising due to fears of global supply disruptions. The conflict in the Middle East is…