Also known as: World Bank Group
Multilateral development institution whose structural adjustment programs in Africa are referenced in coverage of economic policy and debt dependency.
Key points drawn from coverage. Tap a point to see the original sentence.
The Namibian
World Bank estimates that 80% of late-primary-age children in Namibia are not proficient in reading
“World Bank estimates show that 80% of late-primary-age children in Namibia are not proficient in reading.”
How Can Every Dollar Deliver the Greatest Benefit for Namibia?The Namibian
The World Bank Group appointed Stefano Mocci as country manager for Namibia
“The World Bank Group has appointed Stefano Mocci as its new country manager for Namibia, effective 1 July.”
World Bank appoints Mocci as Namibian country managerThe Namibian
World Bank was created at Bretton Woods Conference to reconstruct infrastructure
“The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank were created to reconstruct infrastructure destroyed by war.”
We Are Already in Heaven, if Not in HellWindhoek Observer
World Bank suggests migrants are often net job creators who establish businesses and stimulate economic activity
“Research by the World Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development suggests that migrants are often net job creators who establish businesses and stimulate economic activity.”
Xenophobic tendencies will kill our South African dreamThe Namibian
World Bank suggests that migrants are often net job creators
“Foreign-born residents make up only about 5% of South Africa's population, and research by the World Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development suggests that migrants are often net job creators who establish businesses and stimulate economic activity.”
Opinion: Xenophobic Tendencies Will Kill Our South African DreamWindhoek Observer
World Bank was created to reconstruct infrastructure destroyed by war
“The IMF and World Bank were created to reconstruct infrastructure destroyed by war.”
We are already in heaven, if not in hellWindhoek Observer
World Bank kept Africa sick through loans that left sub-Saharan states trapped in debt, dependency, and stagnant growth
“Under IMF structural adjustment programmes and World Bank loans, Europe moved from rubble to prosperity. Namibia and other sub-Saharan states remained trapped in debt, dependency, and stagnant growth.”
We are already in heaven, if not in hellThe Namibian
World Bank is serving as coordinating institution for the preparation process
“The World Bank is serving as the coordinating institution for the preparation process.”
Namibia lays groundwork for N$4.1b climate fundWindhoek Observer
World Bank downgraded Namibia from upper-middle income to lower-middle income in 2024
“Namibia's recent downgrade by the World Bank from upper-middle income to lower-middle income in 2024 proves the point.”
Boksburg 2026: The return of the blocs and a lesson for Africa and NamibiaThe Namibian
World Bank reported in March 2026 that poverty rates remain stubbornly high in sub-Saharan Africa
“A World Bank report published in March 2026 revealed that "poverty rates remain stubbornly high in sub-Saharan Africa".”
OPINION: Have African leaders betrayed the dream of 1963?Namibia has joined an initiative with seven other southern African countries to use cost-benefit analysis to help governments achieve better outcomes with limited budgets. The tool translates economic, social, and environmental costs and benefits into present-day dollars, allowing policymakers to compare policy alternatives and prioritise spending.
19 July 2026 · The Namibian →
Namibia has joined an initiative with seven other southern African countries to use cost-benefit analysis to help governments achieve better outcomes with limited budgets. The tool translates economic, social, and environmental costs and benefits into present-day dollars, allowing policymakers to compare policy alternatives and prioritise spending.
19 July 2026 · The Namibian →
The World Bank Group has appointed Stefano Mocci as its country manager for Namibia effective 1 July, overseeing the bank group's operations across three institutions and working to support projects aimed at boosting economic growth, creating jobs and improving resilience. Mocci brings more than 20 years of World Bank experience and previously served as country manager for Fiji and the South Pacific and Papua New Guinea.
7 July 2026 · The Namibian →
An opinion piece argues that across religion, economics, and politics, Namibians are promised future rewards—heaven, development, prosperity—while present hardship continues. The piece draws a parallel between Christian teaching on earthly poverty and future salvation, and how structural adjustment programs imposed on Africa by the IMF and World Bank produced different outcomes than for Europe, leaving sub-Saharan states trapped in debt and stagnant growth.
7 July 2026 · The Namibian →
Prof. Bismark Tyobeka, principal of North-West University, warns that xenophobic violence and threats against foreigners risk making South Africa "one of the world's pariahs," contradicting the nation's post-1994 commitment to openness and moral leadership.
30 June 2026 · Windhoek Observer →
The principal and vice chancellor of North-West University argues that recent xenophobic attacks and threats of violence against immigrants risk reversing South Africa's trajectory as a moral leader since 1990, and warns that citizens must reject both xenophobia and tolerance of illegal immigration.
29 June 2026 · The Namibian →
An opinion piece argues that across religion, economics, and politics, Namibians are promised rewards later—heaven after death, development after structural adjustment, prosperity after elections—while gatekeepers remain unchanged. The author contends that the same IMF and World Bank institutions that rebuilt Europe after World War II have trapped Africa in debt and stagnant growth.
24 June 2026 · Windhoek Observer →
The government launched a multilateral development bank mission to finalise a Sectoral Transformation Investment Plan to access up to US$250 million in concessional climate financing under the Climate Investment Funds' Industry Decarbonisation Programme, aiming to support the transition of high-emitting sectors and scale up green industries.
23 June 2026 · The Namibian →
An analysis of South Africa's "Conference of the Left" in Ekurhuleni argues that the meeting signals a return of competing Cold War-style blocs—communist and capitalist—reshaped around state-led development and anti-imperialism versus inclusive capitalism. The writer warns Namibian and African leaders not to be drawn into antagonism that serves these blocs rather than their own material interests.
18 June 2026 · Windhoek Observer →
An opinion piece questions whether African leaders have acted as a unified front to address the continent's problems as envisioned by Ghana's founding president Kwame Nkrumah at the 1963 founding summit of the Organisation of African Unity, and examines whether Africa has gained true control of its mineral wealth or remains dependent on external powers.
24 May 2026 · The Namibian →
According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, utility-scale solar and onshore wind power now cost about US$40 per megawatt-hour globally in 2025, less than half the cost of new gas turbine plants at over US$100 per megawatt-hour, as renewable costs have fallen and fossil fuel prices have risen.
12 May 2026 · The Namibian →
The one-month countdown to the 2026 Fifa World Cup begins Monday with a record 48 teams descending on the United States, Canada and Mexico, though soaring ticket prices, political tensions, and conflict in Iran have cast an early shadow over the tournament.
10 May 2026 · The Namibian →
Namibia's upcoming offshore oil, gas, and mineral wealth presents an opportunity or trap depending on management. An opinion piece contrasts Singapore's model of meritocracy and clean governance with South Africa's race-based empowerment and state patronage, positioning them as competing templates for Namibia's development path.
26 April 2026 · The Namibian →
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah commissioned a new National Governing Council of the African Peer Review Mechanism, with Namibia tasked to spearhead efforts tackling youth unemployment across Africa. The country's approach involves youth development funding, apprenticeships and education support, though Namibia itself faces a youth unemployment rate of around 44.4% according to census-based figures.
23 April 2026 · New Era →
Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to miss the UN's 2030 target for universal access to clean cooking energy, with 900 million people lacking access on the continent. The article argues that closing a US$5.5 billion annual funding gap requires diverse solutions including LPG, solar stoves, and biogas, alongside innovative financing and inclusive policies.
14 April 2026 · The Namibian →
Namibian state-owned enterprises owe N$9.3 billion in external debt, most of it guaranteed by the government and owed to regional and global development banks. The Bank of Namibia's 2025 annual report notes a significant portion relates to intercompany lending in mining and quarrying, with the government aiming to keep debt guarantees below 10% of GDP.
11 April 2026 · The Namibian →
A voluntary mentorship initiative founded by human resources practitioner Tuuda Haitula provides career guidance, interview skills, and personal development to young men in Namibia, with participants reporting improved job readiness and market understanding. Now in its third year, the programme attracts 150+ registrations annually and offers structured sessions focused on CV building, professional communication, and workplace expectations, with organisers calling for greater public and private sector collaboration to address youth unemployment.
1 April 2026 · New Era →
Iran has threatened to target desalination plants in the region after claiming damage to its own water and energy infrastructure in conflict with Israel and the US, with experts warning that attacks on such facilities in the Middle East—where desalination supplies most of the region's drinking water—could trigger catastrophic humanitarian and economic consequences.
24 March 2026 · New Era →
Popular Democratic Movement parliamentarian Inna Hengari has been elected to the World Bank's steering committee of global young members of parliament, representing the eastern and southern African region from 2026 to 2028, marking Namibia's first representation on this platform.
19 March 2026 · The Namibian →
Zimbabwean white farmers whose land was seized during Robert Mugabe's rule are seeking help from Donald Trump's administration to recover $3.5 billion in unpaid compensation promised by President Mnangagwa, leveraging the US interest in Zimbabwe's rare-earth mineral deposits and the Trump administration's previous support for white farmers in South Africa. Some farmer groups have hired a Washington lobby firm with Trump administration ties to promote the compensation through US government support for debt relief and international financing, though the farming community remains divided on the strategy and some fear worsening relations between Washington and Harare.
16 March 2026 · The Namibian →
Denis Sassou Nguesso, 82 and in power for over 40 years, is heavily favored to win Sunday's presidential election in Congo-Brazzaville as the opposition remains divided and sidelined. Observers expect record-low voter turnout in the oil-rich but impoverished nation, where many citizens express frustration over unemployment despite economic growth.
12 March 2026 · New Era →
While the International Monetary Fund forecasts Africa's 2026 economic growth will outpace Asia's for the first time in modern history, economists warn that this recovery has yet to translate into improved living conditions for ordinary people in major economies like South Africa and Nigeria. In both countries, high costs for food, energy, and transport persist despite macroeconomic gains, and households remain poorer than a decade ago.
6 March 2026 · The Namibian →
The World Bank reports that complete workplace equality does not exist anywhere globally, and enforcement of equality laws occurs in only about half of cases. The bank calls for reforms as 1.2 billion young people, half female, will enter the workplace over the next decade, particularly in regions where women face the greatest barriers.
26 February 2026 · New Era →
President Nandi-Ndaitwah reported at the African Peer Review Mechanism Summit that the National Youth Development Fund, established in 2025 with N$500 million capitalisation, created over 700 jobs in the 2025/26 financial year through loans and grants without collateral requirements. Namibia is also addressing youth unemployment through free tertiary education, mandatory internship programmes, and vocational training centres across all 14 regions.
26 February 2026 · New Era →
African Heads of State called for urgent and sustainable financing after the 2025 Africa Malaria Progress Report revealed 270.8 million malaria cases and nearly 600,000 deaths on the continent in 2024. Leaders warned that declining international funding and stalled progress risk reversing decades of gains, and urged countries to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation while appealing to global partners to honour pledges and support local manufacturing of antimalarial tools.
17 February 2026 · Informanté →
Namibia, the world's third-largest uranium producer, is advancing nuclear power plans to reduce energy imports and meet growing demand. President Nandi-Ndaitwah has announced plans for the country's first nuclear power plant with support from Rosatom and China, though the project faces challenges including high capital costs and limited technical expertise.
13 February 2026 · The Namibian →
As the world's third-largest uranium producer, Namibia is advancing plans for its first nuclear power plant to reduce reliance on imported electricity and support its Vision 2030 development goals, backed by international partnerships with Russia and China. The project faces significant capital costs and requires imported technical expertise, but recent cabinet approval of Namibia's Nuclear Industry Strategy signals sustained government commitment.
12 February 2026 · New Era →