| :: Namibia Background
Politics & Economics
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| Credit: David Wetherell |
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The Namibian head of state is president, Hifikepunye Pohamba, who was elected by popular vote on 21 March 2005. The government is headed by the prime minister, who, together with his cabinet, is appointed by the president. SWAPO, the primary force behind independence is still currently the country's largest party.
The main opposition party is the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA) which is a moderate, 11 party alliance. Thus far the government has remained stable and elections based on universal franchise are held every five years. The Namibian legal system is based on the Roman-Dutch rule of law, and the constitution was drawn up for independence with UN recommendations in 1990.
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Despite the lack of water and local fuel sources, Namibia is still a very prosperous African country. The main reasons for this success have been a constant effort to attract foreign investment and a reasonably sensible approach to the exploitation of natural resources. The mainstays of the economy are mining (mainly diamonds and uranium), agriculture (cattle and karakul sheep), fishing and tourism. Tourism has now overtaken fishing in terms of revenue earnings. The largest uranium mine in the country is Rossing, near to Swakopmund. The high quality diamond deposits are found in alluvial sands and gravels and are mainly extracted by strip mining. In addition to uranium and diamonds, Namibia also has reserves of lithium, germanium, silver, vanadium, tin, copper, lead and zinc.
Commercial farming is mostly carried out in the central and southern areas of the country. Subsistence farming occurs widely in the higher rainfall areas of the north. Over the years the commercial emphasis has shifted from cattle to game ranching, this is due to the high incidence of drought and the fact that game animals are infinitely better able to cope with these harsh conditions than cattle. Many benefits can be seen in this approach; the main one being that habitats are able to return slowly to an ecological equilibrium much closer to the natural state. Indigenous game animals also exert a lot less grazing pressure on the land due to their varied diet.
The Benguela current is responsible for the rich fishing waters off the coast of Namibia. The cold waters swelling up from the Antarctic are rich in plankton and sustain plentiful shoals of anchovy, pilchard and mackerel as well as the larger tuna and swordfish and rock lobster and oysters. The tuna reaches a high price in the European market and plane loads of fresh fish are flown out of Namibia each week. Unfortunately for visitors to the Namibian coast, fresh tuna and swordfish are therefore difficult to get hold of in coastal restaurants! Luckily there are still many other options and Swakopmund is renowned for high quality lobster, oysters, calamari and shark, amongst others.
Although primary education is compulsory, few children complete secondary school due to the shortage of qualified teachers and the remoteness of many villages. Namibia does have a university and polytechnic, both based in Windhoek. Many volunteers from throughout the world come to Namibia to teach for a time, and they do help to enhance educational opportunities in remote areas although their input is transitory. Schooling is mainly conducted in English. The main religion is Christianity and the official languages are Afrikaans and English, although German is also widely spoken as well as very many tribal dialects. Health facilities in towns and cities are excellent, although these are mainly private. In the remote rural areas, outreach is more difficult.
:: Currency
The Namibian currency is linked one to one with the South African Rand. Each dollar is divided into 100 cents. The South Africa Rand is is interchangeable with the Namibian dollar in Namibia and all Rand notes and coins are accepted. However, the Namibia dollar is not accepted in South Africa! Namibian dollars are difficult to get hold of outside the country and it is easier to purchase cash in South African Rands before travelling. US$ can be easily exchanged throughout the country, as can Euro and pounds sterling. Travellers cheques can also be changed in banks and most accommodation establishments accept credit cards, mainly Visa or Mastercard, although this should be checked before arrival. Please note that AMEX is not accepted in the majority of Namibia. Fuel cannot be purchased with credit cards, and in the more remote areas most places only accept cash.
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