Namibia has become the fourth country in Africa to roll out an instant payments solution, with the Bank of Namibia (BoN) saying the development marks a major milestone in the country’s efforts to modernise its national payments system and expand digital financial services.
Speaking at the Payments Association of Namibia’s (PAN) annual general meeting and the launch of its 2025 annual report during the association’s 20th anniversary celebrations, BoN Deputy Governor Leonie Dunn said the instant payments solution became operational in June 2026, placing Namibia among the first 50 countries globally to deploy the technology.
“We have now evolved to rolling out our instant payments solution and the current use case having gone live in June. We are now really among the top 50 countries globally that have got the solution, and only the fourth on the African continent,” Dunn said.
She said the rollout forms part of broader reforms aimed at strengthening Namibia’s national payments ecosystem, including the transfer of licensing and supervisory responsibilities to the central bank under a new Payments Association framework.
According to Dunn, the establishment of PAN’s independent governance structures, funding model and management board has created a stronger institutional platform to coordinate payment system development, industry standards and collaboration among payment service providers.
She said future progress will depend on close cooperation between regulators, financial institutions and payment service providers as digital and interoperable payment systems continue to evolve.
“The future of payments will not be shaped by regulation or technology alone. It will ultimately be shaped by how effectively we collectively collaborate. Payments are becoming increasingly interoperable and digital, and cooperation between regulators, payment service providers and the broader payments ecosystem will be essential,” she said.
Dunn said Namibia’s financial inclusion rate increased from 78% in 2017 to 86% in 2025, driven by wider access to digital financial services, electronic money, digital wallets and agent banking networks.
However, she said the country still faces challenges, including continued reliance on cash, limited access to financial services in rural areas, barriers within the informal sector and the digital divide.
“The statistics show a positive trajectory around financial inclusion. The story is far from over. Our focus must now ensure effective use of that access so that we can enable financial health within the Namibian population,” Dunn said.
She also acknowledged concerns over payment transaction costs, saying reducing fees will require coordinated action across the payments industry.
Looking ahead, Dunn said the Bank of Namibia has begun work on the next phase of the National Payment System Vision 2030, which will focus on improving interoperability, affordability, innovation and public confidence while exploring emerging technologies such as open finance.
The launch follows the successful pilot of Namibia’s Instant Payment Solution (IPS) in June, when live transactions were processed between the Bank of Namibia’s Currency Management and Banking Operations Department and the first participating institutions, namely Bank Windhoek, Nampost and Letshego Bank Namibia, ahead of the phased national rollout.
