CHAMWE KAIRA
The country’s efforts to reduce road fatalities are beginning to yield results, but deteriorating road infrastructure, growing traffic volumes and a widening maintenance funding gap threaten to undermine these gains.
This was revealed by recent presentations made to the National Council Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Housing by the Road Fund Administration (RFA) and the Roads Authority (RA).
While road fatalities declined by about 3% between 2020 and 2024, road crashes and injuries continued to rise, increasing by an average of 11% and 7% respectively over the same period.
The RFA attributed the improvement in fatalities partly to intensified alcohol and drug screening programmes, with the downward trend expected to continue as enforcement expands. However, the increase in crashes indicates that safer roads will require more than stricter policing.
The RFA told the committee that road maintenance demand now exceeds available funding by N$2.3 billion, leaving authorities struggling to maintain an expanding network under increasing pressure from higher traffic volumes and climate-related damage.
Extreme weather events are adding a new dimension to infrastructure planning, forcing authorities to allocate additional resources to rehabilitation while simultaneously trying to address long-standing maintenance backlogs.
The Roads Authority outlined plans for extensive rehabilitation and expansion projects across key national highways, with estimated costs running into tens of billions of dollars should the government opt for full dual carriageways.
Among the largest proposed projects is the 82-kilometre Windhoek-Rehoboth corridor, where construction of a dual carriageway is estimated at N$12.8 billion following completion of the design phase.
The Okahandja-Otjiwarongo section would require an estimated N$27.1 billion for a dual carriageway, while the Otjiwarongo-Otavi upgrade is projected at N$18.5 billion.
Other strategic corridors, including Otavi-Tsumeb, Swakopmund-Arandis, Arandis-Usakos, Omaruru-Otjiwarongo and the Grootfontein-Rundu route through Mururani, also feature prominently in the authority’s long-term planning.
Heavy vehicles account for 38% of traffic on the Otavi-Tsumebroute, 37% on the Omaruru-Otjiwarongo corridor and nearly half of all traffic on the Grootfontein-Mururani and Mururani-Rundu sections.
Such freight-intensive corridors experience significantly greater pavement wear than roads carrying predominantly passenger vehicles, increasing maintenance costs.
The RFA plans to undertake research into long-term fundraising strategies, align its funding model with the Integrated Strategic Business Plan 2024-2029, the Sixth National Development Plan and Vision 2030, and work with the Namibia University of Science and Technology to develop sustainable road funding options.
At the same time, the RFA continues to finance road safety interventions alongside infrastructure investment. During the 2024/25 financial year, it allocated N$50.04 million to traffic law enforcement and adjudication, achieving a 97% budget execution rate with N$48.35 million disbursed to the Namibian Police traffic division and selected municipal traffic authorities.
The enforcement campaign appears to have delivered measurable behavioural changes. Authorities reported a 25% reduction in speeding violations, a 76% decline in loading offences and a 52% reduction in seat belt violations.
At the same time, driver licence summonses increased from 119 725 to 144112, indicating more intensive enforcement activity.
