Ten public enterprises are earmarked to receive N$746.8 million in total as a government subsidy for the 2022/23 financial year, the Ministry of Public Enterprises announced on Thursday.
The subsidies according to figures shared in Parliament by Acting Public Enterprises minister, Ipumbu Shiimi, will take up more than 90% of the ministry’s budget of over N$790.67 million.
The Namibia Wildlife Resorts will receive the biggest subsidy of over N$188 million, while rail operator TransNamib, which is currently faced with a liquidation threat over an Air Namibia debt, will get the second biggest allocation of N$175 million.
The Namibia Institute of Pathology is allocated N$107 million followed by the Agricultural Business Development Agency (AgriBusDev) with a N$75 million allocation.
The Agro-marketing Trade Agency (AMTA), which is mandated to manage Fresh Produce Business Hubs in the country, is earmarked for a N$72 million share.
The Roads Contractor Company (RCC)’s subsidy will come at N$55 million for the period, with the Namibia Airports company receiving N$47.5 million.
Epangelo mining will receive N$12 million, the Luderitz Waterfront N$9.8 million and the Zambezi Waterfront N$4.46 million.
“Public Enterprises play a very critical role in the economy of any country, especially for countries that are in a developmental stage like Namibia. The result of poor or non-performance of some Public Enterprises can have significant negative impacts on the millions of poor people in the form of unemployment, poverty and inequality,” Shiimi said.
“Experience has shown that most of the issues encountered at Public Enterprises that warrant the intervention of the shareholder, inevitably have financial implications.”
The Ministry of Public Enterprises currently oversees the functions and responsibilities of the 98 parastatals and is set to be transformed into the Department of Public Enterprises under the Ministry of Finance.
