BoN estimates domestic economy to expand by 3.5% in 2024 and 4% in 2025
The Bank of Namibia (BoN) has released its Economic Outlook Update for December 2024, projecting continued economic growth for the country.
The central bank estimates that the domestic economy will expand by 3.5% in 2024 and 4% in 2025.
According to the central bank, the GDP growth is estimated to slow down in 2024, mainly due to subdued growth in the global economy, affecting demand for our minerals and the effects of drought.
“Real GDP growth is projected to moderate downwards to 3.5% in 2024, from 4.2% registered in 2023. The moderation in growth is ascribed to the weak performance in the primary industry, particularly the anticipated contractions in the sub-sectors of diamonds and crop farming. This projection, however, marks an upward revision from the initial 3.1% estimate published in the August 2024 Economic Outlook,” they added.
The central bank further said the 2024 growth estimate was upgraded due to better performances for metal ores (gold), livestock farming (marketing), health, information and communication, wholesale and retail trade, and taxes on products.
Meanwhile, the BoN noted that the main risks to Namibia’s domestic growth projections stem from the adverse effects of the drought and weakened global commodity demand.
“Persistent drought conditions pose a threat to agricultural output during and beyond 2024, while the recovery in diamonds hinges on several external factors, namely, recovery in global demand for natural diamonds, a clear distinction between natural diamonds and lab-grown diamonds by consumers, and the end of trade wars which currently is negatively affecting diamonds,” they concluded.
