Justicia Shipena
The growth of the insurance sector in the first quarter of 2025 was driven by an increase in long-term gross premiums.
The Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), in its report on the country’s gross domestic product, said the insurance sector recorded an 8.1% growth in real value added, recovering from zero growth in the same quarter last year.
This comes as the financial services sector grew by 6.0% in real value added, up from 4.7% during the same period in 2024.
The growth was supported by both the banking and insurance subsectors.
The banking sector posted a 3.4% increase, down from 11.2% recorded last year.
According to the NSA, total deposits in the banking system rose to N$157.5 billion, an increase of N$14.6 billion from N$142.9 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2024.
During the first quarter, the economy grew by 2.7% in real terms, slower than the 4.8% growth in the first quarter of 2024.
“In nominal terms, the size of the economy was estimated at N$62.4 billion, up from N$58.5 billion, a N$4 billion increase,” said the NSA in its report.
NSA statistician general and CEO Alex Shimuafeni said the first quarter of 2025 shows a slowdown in growth when compared to the same period last year, but there are still encouraging signs, especially in the tertiary industries.
He said tertiary industries recorded a 5.1% growth in real value added during the quarter, compared to 4.8% in the same period of 2024.
The sector was supported by health, which grew by 11.4% from 6.0%; wholesale and retail trade at 6.5% compared to 10.1%, financial services at 6% from 4.7% and administrative and support services at 5.7%, down from 7.4%.
Shimuafeni noted that secondary industries contracted by 0.7%, compared to a 0.9% growth recorded last year.
The manufacturing sector declined by 1.7% in real value added, deeper than the 0.9% fall in the same quarter of 2024.
Meanwhile, primary industries also slowed, posting a 3.1% drop in real value added.
He added that this compares to a 5.9% increase in the first quarter of 2024.
Agriculture and forestry declined by 20.1%, while fishing and fish processing on board fell by 8.7%.
The declines were linked to fewer animals marketed and lower volumes of fish landed.
The report also shows that private final consumption expenditure decreased by 0.7%, a reversal from the 24.6% surge seen in the same quarter of 2024.
Furthermore, government final consumption expenditure rose by 5.8%, up from 3.2%, due to increased public service employment.
Gross fixed capital formation grew by 3.8%, compared to 1.1% in the same period last year.
This, NSA said, was due to more investment in machinery, transport equipment, and construction activities.
Exports of goods and services rose by 15.6%, while imports increased by 6.2%. NSA said this helped reduce the external trade deficit.
