Contents -- Map of Namibia -- Fast Facts about Namibia -- People and Poverty -- A small population facing formidable challenges -- Poverty has declined, but remains common -- Apartheid's legacy of dualism -- Health indicators have improved since independence -- HIV prevalence is among the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa -- Tuberculosis inflicts a heavy toll on the population -- School enrollment has improved, but quality of education remains low -- Low skills levels are a major factor in unemployment -- The government undertook a new development strategy in 2007 -- Namibia is making progress toward meeting some of the Millennium Development Goals -- Economy -- Rising GDP and a healthy outlook -- The service sector is a big driver of growth -- Good infrastructure has bolstered tourism's expansion -- The mining sector is the largest source of foreign exchange earnings -- But its contribution to growth is expected to decline -- Agriculture retains its dualistic structure -- There are export opportunities in meat and horticulture -- Processed fish, a key export, has been hit by depleted fish stocks -- The manufacturing base is one of the least diversified in Africa -- But the government is committed to supporting broader-based industrialization -- Job creation is not rapid enough to absorb lost agricultural jobs -- Inflation has intensified over the past year -- Prudent policies have created a stronger fiscal position -- There are uncertainties about future SACU revenue, however -- The government needs to strengthen tax collection and improve quality of public spending -- Namibia is benefiting from a favorable external environment -- The medium-term outlook reflects several risks -- Environment -- Home to diverse natural wealth -- Poor policies have been a catalyst in environmental degradation -- A range of environmental challenges require attention.

Freshwater scarcity is a perennial issue -- Unsustainable land use leads to land and resource degradation -- Deforestation is an unnecessary waste of woodland resources -- Coastal and marine resources are fragile -- Inadequate regulatory framework for minerals -- Increasing pressure on biodiversity -- Urban pollution will be a future challenge -- Climate change poses a threat to the natural resources-based economy -- The cost of climate change in Namibia could be very significant -- Namibia is signatory to many international environmental frameworks -- Government spending on environmental protection varies by country -- Governance and Business Environment -- Rankings of Namibia's business and competitiveness environment present a mixed picture -- Namibian firms are productive, and unit labor costs are low -- Microenterprises, however, are considerably less productive -- Firms view the investment climate as relatively conducive to business -- The legal environment surrounding private investment needs overhauling -- Infrastructure is not a major constraint to business -- Trade policy is biased against exports -- The financial sector is strong and increasingly well regulated -- Pension funds are well developed -- Access to finance remains limited, however -- Global Links -- Strong economic links within Africa and beyond -- South Africa and the EU are Namibia's largest trade partners -- Terms of trade have improved considerably in recent years -- A net outflow of workers since 2000, but still a much larger stock of immigrants than of emigrants -- Foreign direct investment jumped in 2005 before falling back slightly in 2006 -- A rising but still very low level of remittances -- The United States and Germany are the largest sources of official development assistance -- Higher foreign exchange earnings and growing foreign reserves.

The 25 percent debt ceiling was undershot in 2007/08 -- Namibia and the World Bank Group -- World Bank portfolio -- International Finance Corporation portfolio -- Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency portfolio -- Notes -- References -- Data Appendix -- Boxes -- Box 1 From colonial rule to stable democracy -- Box 2 The success story of table grapes -- Box 3 A high level of biodiversity within the Succulent Karoo ecosystem -- Figures -- Figure 1 Namibia's very young people represent a smaller percentage of its total population than in Sub-Saharan Africa as a whole -- Figure 2 Namibia's population structure, AIDS and no AIDS scenarios, 2015 -- Figure 3 Unemployment rates by level of education -- Figure 4 Namibia's economy is growing, but at a slower rate than in Sub-Saharan Africa as a whole -- Figure 5 Tourism receipts, selected countries -- Figure 6 Mining accounts for a larger proportion of GDP in Namibia than in South Africa, but a smaller proportion than in comparator countries -- Figure 7 Though Namibia's fiscal balance is lower than that of most of its SACU counterparts, its current account surplus is one of the strongest -- Figure 8 Labor productivity in manufacturing SMLEs in Namibia is high compared to that in other Sub-Saharan African countries -- Figure 9 Productivity growth in Namibia has been higher than that in most neighboring countries in recent years -- Figure 10 Though the basic corporate tax rate in Namibia is high, incentives can reduce the effective rate so that it is lower than in most comparator countries -- Figure 11 Compared with manufacturing firms from other middle-income countries, relatively few firms in Namibia export -- Figure 12 Namibia's exports go mostly to the EU and South Africa, while imports come overwhelmingly from South Africa.

Figure 13 FDI to Namibia outpaces official development assistance and workers' remittances by a wide margin -- Tables -- Table 1 Namibia's health indicators are generally better than those of Sub-Saharan Africa, but worse than those of lower-middle income countries -- Table 2 Namibia's progress toward meeting the MDGs is mixed -- Table 3 Environmental indicators in Namibia versus Sub-Saharan Africa and middle-income countries -- Table 4 Environmental expenditure in Namibia and comparator countries -- Table 5 Namibia made slight improvements registering property and getting credit in 2008, but backtracked or remained the same in other areas -- Table 6 Namibia outperforms Sub-Saharan Africa on 35 of 41 business environment indicators -- Table 7 Namibia is an average performer among comparator countries, according to Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index -- Table 8 Financial sector depth in Namibia is better than that in comparator countries -- Table 9 Immigration numbers were many times higher than emigration numbers as of 2005 -- Table 10 Projects in Namibia supported by IBRD and the GEF, fiscal 2008-mid-09 -- Table 11 Projects in Namibia supported by the IFC, fiscal 2008-mid-2009.