Namibia is confronting the scale and fragility of its informal economy after new diagnostic reports revealed that 58% of the population depends on informal work, yet remains largely excluded from social protections.
At the launch of the Diagnostic of Informality reports, Michael Humavindo, Chairperson of the National Working Group on Informality and Executive Director at the Ministry of Finance, said the findings underscored the centrality of informal labour to Namibia’s economic survival.
“The 2024 approved National Informal Economy, Startups and Entrepreneurship Development Policy (NIESEP) indicated that the Informal Economy in 2023 was estimated to be 24.7% of GDP, which represented approximately $8 billion at GDP PPP levels,” he said.
“Such robustness continues as the latest estimate shows for 2025 indicates 26.5% of GDP, representing approximately US$13 billion GDP PPP levels.”
A system built on the margins
The three reports – on the overview of informality, sectoral trends and a policy roadmap – were produced by the Bank of Namibia, the Ministry of Industrialisation and Trade, the Ministry of Mines and Energy, and the United Nations.
The sectoral analysis focused on food and accommodation, as well as agriculture, fishing, and forestry, where workers face the “triple threat” of unemployment in the formal sense, poverty, and entrenched inequality driven by the seasonal nature of their work.
Deputy Governor of the Bank of Namibia, Ebson Uanguta, said the data places a responsibility on policymakers to rewrite the rules of inclusion.
“The data within these pages is not merely informational; it is directional,” he said. “It illuminates the path toward more effective financial services, thoughtfully designed products and targeted infrastructure development… this report is our guide to building systems that empower and include those who have long been on the economic periphery.”
But stakeholders at the dialogue raised concerns. Labour specialist Viki Ya Toivo argued the reports still analyse informality “through an industrial lens”, treating it as a sub-sector rather than “the economy itself”.
Others highlighted the absence of legal frameworks to transition informal workers into formal employment, as well as a lack of statistics, social protection systems, and a tax base.
The research also showed that women account for 53% of informal workers, while rural participation is twice that of urban areas – a reminder of the geographic and gendered inequalities at the heart of the economy.
Countries pursuing targeted reforms to integrate informal workers include Kenya, South Africa, and Lesotho, offering potential models for Namibia’s next steps.
