By: Hee-Dee Walenga
FNB Namibia, through the FirstRand Foundation, sponsored N$333,000 to the Namibia Basketball Federation (NBF) for the upcoming FIBA Women’s Basketball League Africa Qualifiers set to be held in Windhoek from 6 to 10 November 2025.
The fund will allow Namibia to host the FIBA Africa Qualifiers, which were originally meant to consist of eight teams. However, due to financial constraints experienced by the other nations, only Angola – who are the current African champions – Malawi, and Namibia will be partaking. Two of the three teams will advance to the next round of qualifiers in Egypt.
Namibia will be represented by UNAM Phoenix, who have won the Khomas Basketball Association (KBA) Women’s Premier League in each of the last four seasons. Speaking to The Villager, 19-year-old Ashley Linda expressed that they are expecting a tough outing, but showed optimism about taking on the challenge. “We have been working hard and we are hoping to use our strengths to qualify for Egypt,” Linda stated.
Speaking at the press conference on Tuesday morning, FNB Namibia Analytics Manager, Lionel Hamutenya, declared, “here at FNB Namibia, we believe in Namibian sports and building a globally competitive Namibia, not just in the financial sector, but sports as well.”
FNB Namibia has been a longstanding supporter of Namibian basketball. In 2020, the bank sponsored the national 3×3 tournament in Otjozondjupa Region. In February 2025, it sponsored the national 5×5 tournament in the Oshana Region. The bank also sponsored a 5×5 national tournament in the Erongo Region earlier this year.
NBF president Nigel Mubita added that FNB’s support allows the federation to develop the grassroots of basketball in the country, which has culminated into Namibia hosting the upcoming international women’s tournament.
FNB Namibia Sponsorship and Social Impact Manager, Revonia Job, added, “It is important to invest in sport. It contributes to economic and community development in the country.”
