By: Dwight Links and Nghiinomenwa-vali Hangala
There is a notable sluggishness in the implementation of the budget for the Capital/Development project by the government.
In an update from the Minister of Finance, Ericah Shafudah, she stated that less than 30% of the N$9.7 billion capital budget has been spent as at the end of September 2025.
She said the implementation of the development budget expenditure since 27 March 2025 was at a low rate.
This budget is targeted at implementing 960 development projects, of which 409 are ongoing, while 551 are new in the sense that some ongoing projects have been unpacked.
The 2025/2026 Financial Year budget allocation amounts to N$9.6 billion, representing a 9 percent increment from the previous year’s allocation of N$9.4 billion. Allocation for the subsequent financial years has also been increased. However, despite the increase, the funds are not being utilised.
Consequently, projects are not being initiated, the money is not flowing into the economy, and jobs are not being created. Shafudah, who shared the updates at the engagement with various stakeholders of the public sector – which include the regional offices and authorities – on how far they had implemented their budgets, noted that “The operational budget stood at 79%, with an execution rate between all stakeholders of the public sector being at 54%. The development budget implementation was below 30% as of September this year.”
On ideas sourced from the stakeholders, the minister noted that some spoke to the long and cumbersome procurement processes. To this, some government officials contacted by The Villager revealed that the release of funds was often approved late, which contributed to the slow implementation of the budget which was finalised in May already.
The minister met with the civil society at a recent meeting for consultations for the upcoming Mid-year Budget Review slated for 21 October.
Director of the Institute for Public Policy Research, Graham Hopwood, outlined that this was the fourth civil society and ministerial engagement on budgeting inputs. Other engagements also included those with the National Planning Commission.
In explaining the reasons for these consultations, Hopwood noted that the idea of having the civil society directly impact the budgeting process stemmed from the former finance minister, Iipumbu Shiimi.
“If you want to talk to us, make sure these engagements happen before the Mid-year Budget Review because then the impact will not only be seen in the immediate Mid-year Review, but also in the next budget cycle the following year,” Hopwood indicated.
From an IPPR perspective, Hopwood indicated that there is motivation to see how transparent Namibia’s budgeting process is.
“We looked at the Open Budget Survey, which is an independent global mechanism that evaluates how transparent, participatory, and accountable national budget processes are. It gives governments scores on the levels of public access to budget documents and opportunities for public participation,” he added.
This evaluation also looks into the strength of the parliamentary committees and the other oversight organs. The access is based on the various documents and policies that are accessible on the Ministry of Finance’s website, which includes the up-to-date budget documents, the Medium-term Expenditure Framework, and others.
Minister Shafudah outlined that having these discussions in her first year as minister is good, as they aim to understand how the ministries, agencies, and offices are implementing the budget.
“When the budget had to be launched in March this year, the NDP 6 was not yet finalised. However, the budget still speaks to the aspirations of NDP 6,” the minister added.
“All ministries, agencies, and offices have to align their budgetary needs with the four pillars of the NDP 6. We have to make sure that the development of economic growth is evaluated and then assess how this growth is moving. And, these also look into the centres that are focused on,” she stated.
Under human development and community resilience, Shafudah indicated that there is a keen focus on how the social sectors are adequately financed to achieve their goals.
“For example, the recently launched National Youth Fund has a goal to develop the young ones to have lasting business ventures and not just end up as startups. We want them to grow and to flourish,” she remarked.
On the last pillar of the NDP 6, Shafudah noted that it is also important to have an understanding of the impacts of the natural environment on the rural and urban communities of the country.
“The various ministries, agencies, and offices have to execute projects or programs that are aligned to the four pillars of the NDP 6 according to their budget allocations,” Shafudah noted.
The consultation will provide an opportunity for dialogue on fiscal policy priorities, expenditure frameworks, and key national development objectives.
This meeting forms part of the ministry’s commitment to transparent, inclusive, and participatory policy-making.
The civil society inputs are regarded as vital in ensuring that the national budget reflects broad societal priorities and contributes to sustainable and equitable development.
Written submissions have been invited by the Ministry of Finance for the focal areas that would require attention in budgetary allocation.
