Blog – Page 5 – Windhoek Observer

07 Apr

Grindrod hails Walvis Bay bulk terminal warehouse facility

Observer Money

Chamwe Kaira The Grindrod Limited has said in the annual report for the financial year ended 31 December 2025 that its new 4 000m² bulk terminal warehouse facility in the Port of Walvis Bay in 2025 marked a significant collaboration between Grindrod and Namport. The company said the facility is aimed at improving efficiency at the port and strengthening Walvis Bay’s role as a trade gateway to the west coast of Africa and neighbouring inland countries. Grindrod operates in Namibia across clearing and forwarding, cross-border and project logistics, marine engineering, marine technology and servicing, ships' agency, stevedoring and terminals. The…

07 Apr

Namibia Breweries shares rated hold by Simonis Storm

Observer Money

Staff Writer Namibia Breweries Limited has been assigned a “hold” rating by Simonis Storm Securities, with a 12-month target price of N$26.10. The firm said the current market price of about N$30.30 already reflects much of the company’s performance, leaving limited room for further gains. The outlook implies a negative return of about 6.1% when including a forward dividend yield of 7.8%. The valuation is based on a discounted cash flow model, which places the company’s value at about N$24.70 per share. This is linked to a 16.0% weighted average cost of capital, based on Namibia’s long-term government bond yield…

07 Apr

Namibia, SA bonds spreads widened in 2025

Observer Money

Staff Writer Spreads between Namibian and South African government bonds widened in 2025 as yields in the two markets moved in different directions, the Bank of Namibia said. South African bond yields declined during the year, supported by improved investor sentiment and policy signals from the South African Reserve Bank. The central bank reduced its repo rate by 100 basis points to 6.75% by 20 November 2025. The shift to a single-point 3% inflation target also supported expectations of lower inflation and reduced risk premiums. Global conditions also played a role. The Federal Reserve cut policy rates by 75 basis…

07 Apr

Rethinking founding president Sam Nujoma’s enduring legacy and the unfinished mandate of liberation

Opinions

Paul T. Shipale (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) At independence, a flag rises, an anthem is sung, and a nation declares itself free. But decades later, the more difficult question emerges quietly: persistently free in what sense and for whom? In Namibia today, that question does not begin with policy. It begins with legacy. A system cannot fully erase a national legacy forged through resistance. But it can reshape it, dilute it, and, more subtly, domesticate it. What was once a force of transformation can be reduced to ceremony, honoured in speech and disconnected in practice. The real…

07 Apr

Nominees for MTC Branding and Marketing awards announced

Observer Money

Staff Writer Nominees for the inaugural MTC Namibia Branding and Marketing Excellence Awards have been announced, with organisers confirming 44 shortlisted entries from 109 submissions. The awards recognise work in Namibia’s branding and marketing sector across 15 categories. Most categories feature three nominees, except for Best TV Commercial of the Year. Tim Ekandjo said all entries went through a vetting process led by an independent panel of judges. He said the evaluation focused on innovation, creativity, market impact and contribution to the industry. Ekandjo stated that the process was designed to ensure fairness and that only submissions with measurable impact…

02 Apr

Presidency oil unit gets N$20m of budget pie …MPs warn against funding unit without law

Main, National News

Patience Makwele The Upstream Petroleum Unit under the office of the President has been allocated N$20 million in the 2026/27 budget. The unit was established after President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah took office last year. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah then appointed Kornelia Shilunga as head of the unit with Carlo McLeod as deputy. But the allocated budget to the unit has drawn criticism from opposition lawmakers who say the unit is not yet grounded in law. Debate in the National Assembly on Tuesday had the members of parliament questioning why parliament is being asked to fund an entity before its legal framework is finalised.…

02 Apr

Sacked RA bosses claim disciplinary action was flawed

National News

Justicia Shipena Dismissed senior Roads Authority (RA) executives have accused the institution of failing to follow its own disciplinary procedures. The duo is challenging their dismissal in the High Court. Johann Ludwig Boois and Richard Masule Milinga argue that the process leading to their dismissal in February was flawed and unlawful. They want the court to review and set aside the outcome and reinstate them while the case is being heard. Court documents show that the disciplinary chairperson found them guilty on 25 November 2025. The written judgement was only shared on 20 January, almost two months later. The parties…

02 Apr

Namibia asks Brazil to build factories locally

National News

Patience Makwele Namibia has called on Brazilian companies to invest in its local manufacturing and processing sector. The call was made during talks in Windhoek on Tuesday between Namibia's minister of international relations and trade, Selma Ashipala-Musavyi and Brazil’s minister of foreign affairs, Mauro Vieira. Ashipala-Musavyi said Namibia’s natural resources, including recent oil and gas discoveries and planned green hydrogen projects, offer opportunities beyond extraction. “We encourage Brazilian companies to establish manufacturing and processing plants in Namibia to add value to these resources locally,” she said. The talks focused on expanding cooperation in energy, agriculture and trade. Vieira said Brazil…

02 Apr

IPC’s Mulunga denies illegal land grab claims

National News

Allexer Namundjembo Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) member of parliament Michael Mulunga has denied allegations that he illegally acquired and fenced communal land in the !Kharoxas area. !Kharoxas is seven kilometres south of Groot Aub. Mulunga said he followed all required procedures and only occupies a two-hectare plot. Mulunga was responding to questions from the Windhoek Observer on Wednesday after the Land Access Movement of Namibia, representing the |Khomanin community, claimed that he had fenced off five hectares of land linked to the |Khomani community. He rejected the claims and said the land in question is a two-hectare plot allocated…

02 Apr

Walvis Bay tightens informal trading rules

National News

Allexer Namundjembo The municipality of Walvis Bay has introduced new rules for informal trading. The rules require all traders to register and obtain permits before operating in the town. The regulations were published in a government gazette dated 23 March. Under the new system, traders are not allowed to operate without registration and a valid permit from the council. “A person may not conduct informal trading in the local authority area unless the person is registered to conduct informal trading under these regulations and is issued a permit,” the government gazette states. The rules introduce different types of permits, including…