Namibia PDNA 2009 - GFDRR

Economic Overview
With a per capita income of about US$4,200 in 2008, Namibia is classified as a lower middle-income country. Namibia has experienced
steady growth, moderate inflation, strong external surpluses and low indebtedness over the past several years as a result of generally
prudent fiscal policies, a stable political environment, a fairly developed infrastructure, and a strong legal and regulatory environment.
Namibia’s strong record of macro-economic stability is based in part on a credible peg to the South African Rand through its
membership in the Common Monetary Area, linking Namibia to South Africa’s inflation targeting framework.
The main economic activity in the flooded areas is subsistence farming, with farmers growing pearl millet (locally known as mahangu),
sorghum and keeping small herds of cattle and goats. Rural dwellers generally live in fenced homesteads consisting of mud huts
covered with straw roofs. These homesteads, crop fields and pasture are all located along the flood plains and rivers.
The end of civil war in Angola resulted in improved trade between the two countries. Cars, food and construction materials from
South Africa are transported to the region overland from Walvis Bay, through the north-central Rregions to Angola. As a result, the
affected regions have enjoyed rapid growth that has translated into infrastructure expansion and urbanization over the past several
years. In the north-eastern Regions, especially Caprivi, nature tourism is an important and growing economic activity and source of
revenue.
Poverty
The Kavango and Ohangwena Regions have the highest levels of poverty incidence and also the largest shares of poor households;
these two Regions are home to 17.8 and 16.5 percent, respectively, of all the poor households in Namibia. In other words, these two
regions house more than one-third of poor households in the country. If the Regions of Omusati and Oshikoto are included, then
between the four Regions, almost 60 percent of all poor households in the country are included. Thus, the 2009 floods affected a
population that is already vulnerable, and many were still coping with the cumulative effects disasters (floods and drought).
Table 6: Incidence of poverty and poverty shares by Region, 2003/2004
Region
Incidence of Poverty
(poor)
(% of population)
Incidence of Poverty
(severely poor)
(% of population)
Poverty shares by
Region
(% of total)
Caprivi 28.6 12.5 5.2
Kavango 56.5 36.7 17.8
Ohangwena 44.7 19.3 16.5
Omusati 31.0 12.8 11.9
Oshana 19.6 7.8 6.1
Oshikoto 40.8 16.6 12.7
National Average 27.6 13.8
Source: A Review of Poverty and Inequality in Namibia, Central Bureau of Statistics, National Planning Commission (October 2008)
1.5 Namibia’s Vulnerability to
Natural Hazard and Climate Change
Namibia is considered to be one of the most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change in sub-Saharan Africa. Since
Namibia is home to several different eco-regions (e.g. tropical, semi-arid, desert), the particular challenges posed by climate change
will vary by Region, and the responses are best formulated at the regional and the local levels.
A 1998 Climate Change Country Study identified that the climate change risk for Namibia includes a warming of up to 2 Celsius (C)
over the coming 50 years, and an overall more variable and extreme climate with regional reductions of rainfall. All production sectors
will be affected by such changes, and impacts on agricultural production (drier climates, more variable seasons, more frequent and
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