The Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB) says the country attracted N$73 billion in foreign direct investments (FDI) inflows between 2021 and 2023.
NIPDB Manager of Investment Attraction Selma Namutuwa said the oil and gas sector accounted for 45% of the investment inflows.
“The FDI values over three years were N$73 billion. This was mainly attributed to the oil and gas sector, which accounted for about 45% of the total. Further analysis is still needed to determine where the remaining 55% was allocated, both in terms of sectors and value,” she said.
Namibia ranks fifth in terms of the largest share of capital investment in FDI in the Middle East and Africa, holding a 7% share.
Namutuwa noted that this is notable compared to the larger economies of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Egypt, Oman, Israel and others.
“This is excellent progress for us. In terms of FDI, we are a regional leader in Africa. In 2022, we ranked first, followed by Rwanda in second place and Kenya in third. Notably, 2023 marked our largest recorded value of FDI in the past 10 years, with Namibia experiencing a significant surge in foreign direct investment,” she said.
She added that this was also attributed to Heineken’s acquisition of Namibian Breweries Limited.
According to Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL), its planned acquisition by Heineken NV has the potential to attract investment worth N$10 billion for the country.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Namibia (BoN) last month revealed that the oil and gas sector yielded N$33.4 billion in FDI inflows between 2021 and 2023.
The apex bank Governor Johannes !Gawaxab said the investments, which have the potential to double the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), resulted in massive oil discovery in 2022 and will make Namibia rank among the top 15 oil rich countries in the world.
