Domestic economy slowed to 1.1 percent in 2016

WINDHOEK, Aug. 17 – The Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) today announced that economic growth slowed to 1.1% in 2016, a 0.9% points higher than the estimated figure of 0.2% released on 30 March 2016 as a preliminary figure.
“This slow growth of 1.1 percent during 2016 is coming from a backdrop of a much stronger growth of 6.0 percent recorded in 2015. The slow performance is attributed to the secondary and tertiary industries that recorded a contraction in real value added of 7.8 percent and a slow growth of 3.9 percent, respectively,” said Statistician General Alex Shimuafeni.
The drop in the secondary industries is due to the construction sector that recorded a decline in real value added of 26.5% in 2016 compared to a robust growth of 26.0% in 2015. The real value for construction works by general government slowed to 5.6% in 2016 from a growth of 31.0% recorded in 2015.
The slow growth recorded in the tertiary industries is attributed to the following sectors that have slowed, namely: wholesale and retail (3.4 percent), hotels and restaurants (5.1 percent), real estate and business service (2.5 percent), public Administration and defense (3.3 percent), education (3.5 percent) and health (10.5 percent).

“The primary industries have recovered but they however remain in a contraction, registering a decline in real value added of 2.0 percent in 2016 compared to the 5.2 percent in 2015,” says Shimuafeni.
Meanwhile, recovery in the primary industries is led by the agriculture sector, specifically the livestock farming sub-sector that recorded a growth in real value added of 2.3%  in 2016, following a decline of 13.3% registered in 2015.
Furthermore, a recovery was also witnessed in the crop farming and forestry sub-sector that recorded a decline of 1.2% compared to a deeper contraction of 6.6% registered in 2015.  – Jonsey Douglas