By Erry Iipumbu
December in Namibia has a special kind of magic. The year winds down, Windhoek empties out, and everyone is either travelling home, planning a Christmas party, or plotting a beach braai.
The festive excitement is real and so is the spending. Every year in December, without fail, we spend with the confidence of overnight millionaires, then enter January staring at our bank balances full of regret, “I should have/not”.
Even the most disciplined among us end up humbled, confused, and very prayerful.
But this year must not follow that tired script. Before we travel for the festive season, take out time to set up our investment accounts, review your annual targets and performances of your money.
In this article, I will show you exactly where to find trustworthy information on retail collective investments, what to consider when choosing the right fund, and how to finally stop touching your investments every time life sneezes at you.
I know, yes, I know, nobody wants to talk about investments this time. Yet this is exactly when most people make money mistakes.
Instead of waiting until January resolutions start gathering real information now. One of the most accessible places to begin is Unit Trusts, a collective investment schemes that give retail investors exposure to diversified portfolios managed by professionals like me.
If you visit the NASIA (Namibia Savings and Investment Association) website under “Collective Investment Schemes,” you will find licensed funds with their performance histories, fees, and categories.
It is basically one clean page where you can compare what you are buying, how much you are paying, and how those funds have behaved over time. Think of it as window shopping for your future wealth, a catalogue worth browsing for something that fits your goals.
Here is a snapshot of the Money Market category as of 24 November 2025,
Source: NaSIA https://data.nasia.org.na/
If you open your account now, by the time the fireworks go off on New Year’s Eve you will already have momentum for 2026. Many people plan to invest at the beginning of the year. Very few actually take the first step.
And then there is the big one: people keep touching their investments. Someone will proudly say, “I’m investing to buy my house, in 10 years” but come December, a birthday, a family event, or a new-phone fever, and that investment gets withdrawn quicker than you can say “compounding interest.” The real issue, most people don’t have an emergency fund.
They mix long-term goals with short-term problems. If you are investing for something 10 years away but withdraw every time you are short, that is not investing, that is a confused savings bucket disguised as ambition.
Namibians also carry a unique financial load. High unemployment means one salaried person often supports four or five others. Relatedly, when I drive north for the holidays, I arrive as a provider.
In that reality, long-term investing might start feeling like luxury. But no one is coming to rescue your financial future. It starts with you, even if it’s just N$1,000 a month into a solid balanced fund with a 5–7-year horizon.
Youth investors hear me gently: money market funds are safe, but safety alone will build long-term wealth. For years, balanced funds and other growth-focused options have outperformed money market products over the long run. If you have time on your side, start considering funds with strong growth potential.
As the year winds down, I will be deep in numbers, screening, stress-testing scenarios, and building opportunity-driven strategies for portfolios. While I am doing that, I want you, the retail investor, to prepare too. Enjoy December, spoil your people responsibly, but take one hour to secure the future version of you who will say, “Thank you, self.”
*Erry Iipumbu is an Investment Analyst at Sanlam Allianz Investments Namibia. This article was written in her personal capacity and does not reflect the views of her employer. Connect with her on LinkedIn: Erry Iipumbu.
