The City of Windhoek (CoW) reported a robust financial performance, with a turnover of approximately N$5 billion for the 2022/2023 financial year.
The City Chief Executive Officer, Moses Matyayi, said this is derived from diverse income streams such as water, electricity, rates and taxes, sewer discharge, and waste removal. Matyayi emphasised the importance of these services in fulfilling the council’s mandate.
He said the CoW’s asset base stands at close to N$20 billion, which reassures the council that it can continue to account for its finances.
“Our liquidity levels are around 0 to 9% for the 2022/2023 fiscal year, which we are currently preparing to submit to the public. This demonstrates our commitment to high standards of corporate governance,” said Matyayi.
The CEO noted that despite receiving an adverse opinion from the Auditor General for the prior financial year, the city has addressed critical issues and improved its liquidity ratio. Meanwhile, the Municipality employs 1,861 staff at a cost of N$1.5 billion.
“There are 421 interns and 633 employees on fixed-term contracts. The turnover rate is 5.2%, with a high retention rate of 97%,” said the CEO.
Notably, 471 staff members pursue private study for development, and 141 have undergone generic training.
The organisation allocates N$8.7 million annually for training and development, with N$6.3 million spent during the reporting period.
Matyayi said the city has faced challenges in implementing capital projects due to procurement intricacies and bureaucracies.
“We perform well in terms of our budget, despite these challenges. These are normal project management challenges, and we are looking at ways to complement these processes,” Matyayi noted.
Currently, Windhoek is investing over N$800 million in various capital projects, including initiatives in the circular economy, affordable housing, sustainable energy solutions, and smart city concepts.
Regarding debt, the city reported a standing of N$1.2 billion since 2022.
“The current financial year is not yet audited, and we cannot release this information to the public until the Auditor General completes their review,” Matyayi stated.
In the provision of water services, the city maintains a total reservoir storage of 169,616 m³.
“The cost of disinfection for all water produced, inclusive of NamWater and Wingoc, amounted to N$1,974,329.59,” he said.
For waste removal services, the city uses a fully functional weighbridge system to determine waste quantities with a collection of 84,520 tonnes.
“Disposal to the site is at a cost to the generator (cost recovery) with the total disposable site size being 30 hectares. In the 2022/2023 fiscal year, Windhoek collected 84,520 tonnes of waste, including 12,045 tonnes of hazardous waste,” he said.
