Observer Money

Chamwe Kaira  One of Africa’s largest short-term insurers, Santam, is expanding its regional footprint while strengthening its presence in Namibia as part of a broader strategy to grow insurance coverage across southern Africa. Santam has strengthened its presence in Namibia after acquiring the insurance book of business of Western National Insurance Namibia (Pty) Ltd. The transaction allows Santam Namibia to take over existing policies from Western National Insurance Namibia, increasing its client base and expanding its position in the local insurance market. The development forms part of Santam’s regional strategy to grow insurance coverage across southern Africa. According to the…

Chamwe Kaira  The government plans to spend more than N$758 million on military training and capacity building by the 2028/29 financial year as part of efforts to strengthen defence readiness. Medium-term expenditure plans show that spending on the programme will increase over the coming years.  The allocation will rise from N$702.2 million in the revised 2025/26 budget to N$733.7 million in 2026/27, N$734.1 million in 2027/28 and N$758.4 million in 2028/29. Most of the funding will go to personnel expenditure. This expenditure is expected to increase from N$586.2 million in 2025/26 to N$639.9 million by 2028/29. Spending on goods and…

Staff Writer Standard Bank Namibia has appointed Allvan Farmer as its chief information officer, effective 1 March 2026. Farmer has close to two decades of experience in banking and financial services in Namibia and across southern Africa. His work has focused on enterprise technology leadership, payments infrastructure, cybersecurity and regulatory governance. During his career, Farmer has led technology and operational transformation programmes aimed at improving digital systems and strengthening operational resilience. He has also overseen enterprise technology, payments, cybersecurity and data governance across several African markets. In Namibia, Farmer has been involved in technology localisation and efforts to strengthen financial…

Chamwe Kaira  The government plans to purchase 25 000 hectares of commercial farmland each year between the 2026/2027 and 2028/2029 financial years to support resettlement and agricultural development. The land will be used for the National Resettlement Programme, generational farm workers, landless farmers along agricultural corridors, as well as women and youth participants. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reform’s medium-term programme, the land purchases will also support irrigation projects such as the Neckartal Dam scheme and other agricultural developments. Officials said progress will depend on the availability of funding for land procurement. During the 2024/2025 financial year,…

Staff Writer  Paratus Namibia Holdings Limited has delayed the publication of its interim financial results for the period ended 31 December 2025. In a notice to shareholders, the company said the results will be released after the deadline set under the listing requirements of the Namibia Securities Exchange. The company said the delay follows the rollout of a new operating support system and business support system at Paratus Telecommunications (Pty) Ltd, the group’s main operating subsidiary. The systems were introduced to support the launch of Paratus’ mobile business. According to the board, the company needs more time to reconcile and…

Chamwe Kaira  The Office of the Labour Commissioner resolved 77% of labour disputes during the 2024/2025 financial year, exceeding its target of 75%. According to the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework for 2026/2027 to 2028/2029 for labour and industrial relations, the office handled 4 203 labour dispute cases through its dispute resolution system. Of these cases, 3 253 were resolved, while 950 remained pending by 31 March 2025. Most of the pending cases were delayed due to postponements. Conciliation remained the most common method used to resolve disputes. A total of 2 064 cases, representing 63% of resolved matters, were settled through…

Staff Writer O&L Leisure, the hospitality division of the Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group, has appointed Maryke van Lill as managing director, effective 1 March 2026. Van Lill simultaneously joins the O&L Group executive team, marking a significant milestone for her career and the business. Van Lill brings more than 15 years of diverse experience across marketing, brand strategy, innovation and client leadership. Most recently serving as O&L Leisure's general manager for marketing, she was the driving force behind the "Namibia Through Our Eyes" platform, a philosophy that has redefined how O&L Leisure presents Namibia to local and global travellers.…

Canal+ CEO Maxime Saada says the company will bring its over-the-top (OTT) platform, the Canal+ app, to South Africa to replace the “bleeding” Showmax. MultiChoice announced its intention to shut down Showmax on 5 March 2026 and said it would ensure no disruptions for Showmax subscribers during the transition phase. “As you know, this was a severely loss-making activity on which we saw no recovery, no matter what was done,” the CEO said. Saada explained that Canal+ quickly came to an agreement with Comcast to shut down Showmax as soon as possible but said he couldn’t share details on the…

Anglo American has massively downgraded the value of De Beers on its balance sheet, suggesting a bargain might be in the offing for its many bidders. Which might make the sale easier and quicker, right? Of course, this is not an obvious conclusion, given that after nearly two years, the sale of the once-formidable diamond business is still dragging along, while the assault of lab-grown gems on the market has intensified. Take the fact that a third cut to De Beers’ value last year – from US$4.1bn to a miserable US$2.3bn – was largely to blame for parent Anglo American’s…

Staff Writer  The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has launched its Namibia country strategy paper for 2025–2030, with plans to support the creation of 25 000 jobs for young people and expand key infrastructure across the country. The strategy was launched in Windhoek this week and sets out priorities aimed at improving access to energy and water, strengthening skills development and supporting economic growth. Moono Mupotola, deputy director general for Southern Africa and country manager for Namibia at AfDB, said the strategy marks a new phase in the bank’s partnership with Namibia. “The launch of this country strategy paper marks…