Justicia Shipena
About 200 products identified in a new diversification report represent an estimated US$811 million (roughly N$15.4 billion) in market opportunities under a global export scenario.
Import substitution could add another US$117 million, about N$2.2 billion, while developing a priority subset of products could generate around 26 000 jobs across the economy.
These figures were presented at the launch of the report titled “Rapid Assessment for Value Addition and Diversification to Support Namibia”, held in Windhoek on Thursday.
UNCTAD secretary general Rebeca Grynspan said the report identifies 353 products across 23 sectors where Namibia can diversify, with 60 directly linked to energy transition mineral value chains.
Grynspan said the study uses economic complexity analysis to identify products Namibia can move into based on capabilities it already has.
“It tells you to cross the river without telling you where the stones are. That is what this report does differently,” she said.
She stressed that transformation is about production, not only trade.
“What separates a wealthy economy from a poor one is not, ultimately, the amount of money flowing through it. It is what that economy makes,” she said.
Minister of international relations and trade, Selma Ashipala-Musavyi described the report as “an actualisation of the theme of the eighth administration”. ”.
Ashipala-Musavyi warned that Namibia must avoid remaining dependent on raw mineral exports.
“While the extractive sector remains vital, we must, however, avoid being perpetually confined to a model based predominantly on the export of raw materials,” she said.
She said rising global demand for energy transition minerals presents an opportunity.
“By promoting beneficiation and strengthening local linkages, we can enhance industrial development, create employment, build specialised skills, and secure greater market access for Namibian products,” she said.
She added that “the measure of our success must be reflected not only in export volumes but in the depth of domestic participation across value chains”.
Deputy head of mission at the Embassy of Japan, Noriaki Sadamoto, said countries with critical minerals must translate them into “value addition, economic diversification, employment, and higher standards of living”.
Sadamoto said Japan has funded 27 trilateral cooperation projects in Namibia since 2013, with total investment exceeding US$21 million.
He also highlighted cooperation through JOGMEC in rare earth exploration and supply chain research.
National Planning Commission (NPC) director general Kaire Mbuende said resource wealth alone does not guarantee prosperity.
“Sustainable development is achieved when resources are transformed into industries, industries into jobs, and jobs into improved livelihoods for our people,” he said.
He said the report “provides evidence-based and practical pathways for moving beyond the export of raw commodities toward value addition, industrialisation, and economic diversification. ”.
Mbuende said implementation will determine the outcome.
“The true measure of success will lie in how effectively we translate these recommendations into concrete policies, investments, and partnerships,” he said.
United Nations (UN) resident coordinator to Namibia Phororo said extraction alone will not deliver long-term development.
“Sustainable development will not be achieved through natural resource extraction alone. The real opportunity lies in value addition, diversification, and the deliberate building of productive capabilities across the economy,” she said.
