The government plans to spend around N$210 million to buy new vehicles in a move aimed at increasing operational efficiencies.
The latest government decision is contrary to a five-year moratorium imposed by President Hage Geingob in 2020 banning the purchase of new vehicles for ministers and other public employees as part of his government’s austerity measures.
However, Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprise’s Spokesperson Wilson Shikoto told The Brief that the ban does not apply to vehicles designed to expedite government service delivery.
“The moratorium is not lifted yet, but we always buy as per needs’ basis, for example Ambulances, police vehicles, Works, etc, with a view not to compromise service delivery,” he said.
Shikoto’s statement dovetails with Finance Minister Iipumbu Shiimi’s sentiments that future plans for the 2023–2024 fiscal year include finalising the vehicle fleet for the National Assembly.
The government stopped buying vehicles as far back as 2015 when former Finance Minister Calle Schlettwein put brakes on the government’s vehicle spending in an effort to pursue fiscal sustainability and macroeconomic stability.
The latest development will, however, come as good news to the local vehicle market, which had a promising start in 2023, with 798 units sold in January 2023, compared to 708 in January 2022, representing a year-on-year increase of 12.7%, according to research firm Simonis Storm.
