Net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into Namibia fell to N$6.8 billion in the second quarter of 2025, down from N$12.7 billion in the previous quarter and N$7.3 billion in the same period of 2024, according to the Bank of Namibia.
In its Quarterly Bulletin – September 2025, the Bank said the fall was due to reduced equity injections in the oil sector.
“The decline reflects lower equity injections by oil exploration operators, as drilling activities, particularly in the Orange Basin, have largely declined, with most of the major oil operators now in the appraisal and data evaluation phase ahead of the final investment decisions expected in 2026,” the Bank said.
The decline was compounded by weaker intercompany loan activity and increased repayments. “The decline was further exacerbated by lower uptake of intercompany loans and more repayments from companies in the mining and transport sectors, when compared to the previous quarter,” the bulletin stated.
Primary income outflows remained elevated, largely due to dividend payments to foreign shareholders. Net outflows stood at N$4.0 billion, compared to N$991 million in the same quarter of 2024 and N$3.9 billion in the first quarter of 2025.
“This outcome was mainly driven by higher dividend payments by entities in the mining and financial sectors under the foreign direct investment income sub-category.
In this regard, the income paid to foreign direct investors rose year-on-year by 58.4% and by 3.0% quarter-on-quarter to N$5.1 billion during the second quarter of 2025,” the Bank said.
Namibia’s gross foreign liabilities rose to N$307.3 billion at the end of June 2025, an increase of 1.4% quarter-on-quarter and 7.9% year-on-year.
“At the end of June 2025, the market value of Namibia’s gross foreign liabilities recorded increases both quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year, mainly ascribed to a rise in the stock of direct investment,” the bulletin noted.
Gross external debt also increased, reaching N$184.2 billion. The Bank attributed this to intercompany borrowing by mining and transport firms, along with new foreign trade credit by the private non-banking sector.
“At the end of the second quarter of 2025, Namibia’s gross external debt stock rose on both an annual and quarterly basis, primarily due to increased intercompany borrowing and the incurrence of new foreign trade credit by the private non-banking sector,” the Bank of Namibia reported.
