COUNTRY FOCUS : NAMIBIA
While the country of Namibia does not stand out like South Africa , Kenya , Nigeria , and Egypt for its developed IT industry , the recent announcements into oil and hydrogen energy development will trigger investments into the supporting national ICT ecosystem .
Can the recent energy drive , ICT development ?
Skyline of Namibia ’ s capital city , Windhoek . Will the country ’ s entry into the global energy market boost the domestic ICT economy ?
Namibia ’ s economy is linked to South Africa ’ s due to their shared history , with the largest economic sectors covering mining , wholesale and retail trade , manufacturing , and education .
Namibia has an advanced banking and financial services sector with modern infrastructures , such as online banking and mobile banking . The Bank of Namibia is the central bank of Namibia responsible for performing all other functions ordinarily performed by a central bank .
There are five BoN authorised commercial banks in Namibia : Bank Windhoek , First National Bank , Nedbank , Standard Bank and Small and Medium Enterprises Bank . Namibia has a high percentage of skilled labour relative to SADC countries and relatively low unemployment rates for skilled workers .
In 2013 , Bloomberg named Namibia the top emerging market economy in Africa and the 13th best in the world . Only four African countries made list and Namibia was rated ahead of Morocco , South Africa , and Zambia .
To attract foreign investment , the government has made improvement in reducing red tape resulted from excessive government regulations , making Namibia one of the least bureaucratic places to do business in the region .
Energy as ICT driver
In July this year , major oil discoveries made in less than one-year , attractive fiscal policies and market-focused regulations , and a strong partner in the national oil company have made Namibia one of the world ’ s most enticing hydrocarbon plays in 2023 .
42 INTELLIGENTCIO AFRICA www . intelligentcio . com