Niël Terblanché
The Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF) convened a two-day Private Markets Investment Industry Workshop in Windhoek from 24 to 25 March 2025, aimed at strengthening the country’s unlisted investment landscape by addressing key gaps in capacity and execution.
The event brought together participants from legal and audit firms, the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (NAMFISA), fund managers, board members from the GIPF and other pension funds, directors of Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs), institutional investors, and representatives from the local investor community.
Sara Mezui-Engo, the manager of alternative investments at the GIPF, said in a statement on Thursday that at the heart of the workshop was the effort to build confidence in the Private Equity Real Estate (PERE) ecosystem by improving the competencies of key actors at SPV, fund manager, investor, and regulatory levels.
She added that the GIPF has already committed N$8.33 billion to unlisted investments, including private credit, infrastructure, private equity, and property.
Mezui-Engo also said Namibia had previously drawn global attention for its innovative approach to unlisted investments following the introduction of Regulation 28(4) in May 2013.
“After more than a decade later it is important to take stock and continue with capacity building. There are structural challenges such as a shallow capital market, a small and rather closed economy, few equity providers, and fewer development finance institutions that can provide more favourable debt terms,” she said.
Mezui-Engo explained that beyond these structural barriers, the industry also faces internal limitations that can be addressed.
“Other challenges within the control of the Fund pertain to prescriptive regulation, shallow track record of performance, inadequate skills across the life cycle, and too few role players for a well-functioning ecosystem,” she said, adding that the training was designed especially with emerging fund managers in mind.
According to Mezui-Engo, one of the core themes discussed was the lack of successful exits in the local PERE space.
She added that up until now, no private equity real estate fund in Namibia has completed a full exit of its asset portfolio.
Contributing factors include limited capital raised at the project level, the absence of secondary sales of investor interests, low merger and acquisition activity, and a constrained buyer market.
She also said that there has also been no record of successful initial public offerings (IPOs) or cross-border business scaling.
“A well-functioning ecosystem, equipped with all the necessary role players, strengthens investor confidence and drives more capital allocations,” she said.
She added that auditors must be familiar with valuation standards for unlisted investments, independent valuators should become more prevalent, legal firms must bring contractual best practice into the local context, and fund managers must mature into top-tier operators.
Mezui-Engo also urged that SPV directors be empowered to carry out their fiduciary duties, and regulators continue to evolve the framework to meet the needs of the industry.
The workshop offered practical insights into fund accounting, including methods for tracking performance through hurdle rates and understanding the J-curve effect.
The facilitators of the event, Mardé van Wyk and Rory Ord from South Africa’s 27Four Investment Managers, Nicole Maske from Manta Investments, and Mezui-Engo, focused on how to prepare for and execute fund exits, improve governance, and align the interests of fund managers and investors.
The importance of safe custody services, independent fund administration, and robust risk management practices was also discussed in depth.
Participants, particularly trustees and board members from smaller pension funds without internal investment teams, left with a stronger grasp of the entire PERE process—from sourcing deals to acquisition, management, and exit.
According to Mezui-Engo, the training is expected to support broader economic activity by enabling more effective investment into the real economy.
