Namibia recorded 79,000 passenger arrivals and departures at airport terminals nationwide in January 2025, a decline from 89,442 in December 2024, latest data shows.
According to the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), the figure, however, reflects an increase from the 71,988 passengers recorded in January 2024.
This comes as the Passengers Movement Composite Index (which includes international, regional, and domestic arrivals and departures of passengers at all airports) contracted by 11.7% in January 2025, compared to a contraction of 6.9% recorded in the preceding month. However, the index experienced an increase of 9.7% on an annual basis.
Meanwhile, Hosea Kutako International Airport remains the main hub for passenger arrivals and departures, handling 76.4%, while Walvis Bay and Eros airports account for 11.0% and 6.2%, respectively.
The Arrivals Index for Walvis Bay Airport declined by 28.3% in January 2025, in contrast to a growth of 30.3% reported in the previous month. On the other hand, the index posted an increase of 24.5% year on year.
“In absolute terms, the number of passengers that arrived through the Walvis Bay Airport terminals decreased to 3,881 passengers in January 2025, compared to 5,413 passengers recorded a month earlier, while 3,117 passengers were recorded in January 2024,” noted the NSA.
In January 2025, the Departures Index for Walvis Bay Airport fell by 2.9%, in contrast to the 14.8% growth posted in December 2024. However, the index grew by 19.7% year on year.
“In the month under review, the total number of passengers who departed via Walvis Bay Airport stood at 4,779 passengers, marginally lower than the 4,921 passengers recorded in the preceding month. However, this was higher than the 3,994 passengers reported in the same month of 2024,” the report noted.
In January 2025, the Arrivals Index for Hosea Kutako Airport declined by 17.3%, dropping further when compared to the previous month’s decline of 2.4%. In contrast, the index grew by 10.8% on a yearly basis.
In January 2025, the number of passenger arrivals recorded at Hosea Kutako Airport terminals dropped to 29,802 compared to 35,775 passengers recorded a month earlier, while 26,715 passenger arrivals were registered in January 2024.
The Departures Index for Hosea Kutako Airport recovered in January 2025 with a decline of 9.7% compared to a reduction of 14.0% posted in December 2024. However, the index posted an increase of 7.1% on an annual basis.
“In absolute terms, the number of passengers that departed through the Hosea Kutako Airport terminals stood at 30,759 passengers in January 2025, below the 34,081 passengers recorded in December 2024, while 28,731 passengers were recorded in January 2024,” the NSA revealed.
The Arrivals Index for Eros Airport in January 2025 increased by 4.6%, in contrast to the preceding month’s decline of 22.6%. On the other hand, the index declined by 8.2% in the corresponding month of 2024.
In January 2025, the number of passengers that arrived via Eros Airport terminals increased to 2,410 passengers, up from 2,303 passenger arrivals recorded in December 2024, while the corresponding month of 2024 recorded a total of 2,624 passenger arrivals.
The Departures Index of Eros Airport for January 2025 recorded an increase of 6.6%, in contrast to a decline of 19.3% recorded in December 2024. Conversely, the index contracted by 7.0% on a yearly basis.
“The number of passengers that departed via the Eros Airport terminals in January 2025 increased to 2,495 passengers, compared to 2,340 passengers recorded a month earlier. However, this was lower than the 2,684 passengers who departed via the airport in January 2024,” said the NSA.
