Government has decided to raise civil servant salaries by five percent from 1 April. About 119,000 public employees will benefit. The adjustment will add roughly N$1.8 billion to the national wage bill. Basic salaries already consume about N$31.9 billion a year.
For many workers the increase will be welcome. Prices have risen. Households are under pressure. Public servants feel the same strain as everyone else.
But the numbers invite a question that cannot be ignored.
What does the public receive in return?
The state’s wage bill remains one of the largest and most rigid costs in the national budget. Development needs are growing. Fiscal space is limited. Every additional billion spent on salaries is money that cannot be directed elsewhere. When taxpayers carry such a burden, they are entitled to expect something in return.
Not miracles. Not perfection.
Just accountability, professionalism and service.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah addressed this issue in unusually blunt terms. Her message to civil servants was simple. The culture of routine complacency in the public service must end, and those unwilling to adapt should reconsider whether public service is the right place for them.
The point was not subtle. A job in government is not merely employment. It is a responsibility to the public.
That responsibility has too often been forgotten. Across the country, citizens share similar experiences. Endless queues. Phones that ring without answer. Paperwork that disappears into administrative silence. Officials who behave as if assisting the public is an inconvenience rather than the core of their work.
These are not small irritations. They shape how citizens experience their own government.
Namibia remains a country where stable employment is a privilege. Unemployment is high and economic opportunities remain uneven. A secure government salary therefore carries weight. It also carries an obligation.
A pay increase financed by taxpayers should be matched by a visible improvement in service and conduct.
When public finances are stretched, inefficiency is not merely frustrating. It is expensive.
Parliament has also begun to question how performance in the civil service is measured. Member of Parliament and former finance minister Iipumbu Shiimi noted that Namibia’s appraisal system is rarely used to distinguish between strong performers and those who consistently underperform.
He indicated that lawmakers intend to examine reforms aimed at introducing clearer incentives for good performance and improving efficiency across government departments.
A merit-based culture would strengthen public institutions. Those who work hard should be recognised. Those who repeatedly fail to perform should not be protected by the system.
But accountability does not always require elaborate reforms or new legislation.
Sometimes it requires something far simpler.
Basic professionalism.
Courtesy.
A willingness to help the citizen standing in front of you.
The President made this point directly when she urged public officials to stop dismissing citizens by saying they are too busy. People seeking assistance do not see internal workloads or administrative pressures. They see the person representing the state.
And that person becomes the face of government.
Namibia is committing billions to sustain and expand its public service payroll. That investment carries expectations.
At the very least, citizens should be able to expect polite, responsive and competent service from the institutions they fund.
The salary increase arriving in April should therefore be viewed as more than a financial adjustment.
It is an opportunity for the public service to reset its relationship with the people it serves.
The public has honoured its side of the bargain.
Now the public service must do the same.
* Briefly is a weekly column that is opinionated and analytical. It sifts through the noise to make sense of the numbers, trends and headlines shaping business and the economy with insight, wit and just enough scepticism to keep things interesting. THE VIEWS EXPRESSED ARE NOT OUR OWN, we simply relay them as part of the conversation.
