Is a national airline really a development pillar?
Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro
Air Namibia ceased operations and was liquidated in 2021. The Namibian government decided to shut it down as a last resort given the substantial financial burden on the state.
Thus, Namibia currently lacks a national flag carrier, for better or worse. For better or worse. For better with its demise having been a good riddance for releasing much-needed resources for other priorities rather than investing such in a bottomless hole as it seemed. Although given the kleptomaniac culture that has for long now been engulfing and gripping the country extensively, firmly and systemic, there’s no certainty if indeed the resources saved in this regard, may indeed have been properly directed and invested in worthy causes.
But for the worse in the sense that its liquidation left many a fellow citizens on the streets without work. Thereby exacerbating the unemployment situation in the country at 36.8% in 2021. Ala the powers that be the new airline is expected to strengthen Namibia’s aviation sector, boost tourism as well as improve regional and international connectivity. With the conductor of the political choir, the President conducting that while Namibia’s road network is well developed, other transport sectors lag, reaffirming the government’s commitment to bring back a national air carrier.
There are now talks of a new national airline. The full details thereof are yet to be known, including its launch date, but foremost its economic rational other than just pure nostalgia and national pride. But pride at what cost? Yours Truly Ideologically cannot but wonder. In view of the lessons from Air Namibia. When in the decade leading up to its liquidation in 2021 it is reported to have spent over N$9 billion in bailing out the airline. With specific annual allocations of N$579.8 million in 2015; N$722.4 million in 2016/2017 and N$629.6 million in 2017/2018.
It is uncertain how much during the said periods the airline may have recouped for the country’s coffers in whatever way, whether in terms of the tourists who sued it and who much they may have sent in the tourism sector and related entities. Thus the political decision to establish a new airline could not have been purely on nostalgia and national pride but foremost on its economic usefulness and contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The 500-700 million Namibian dollars that Namibia allocated to Air Namibia in the cited financial years surely is a significant amount in terms of her budget with which she could have built a number of classrooms. Which could have been a worthwhile investment. For investment in education and thus in the young generation who are the future of this country, is by no means an insignificant feat.
Likewise, during the time that Air Namibia has been liquidated Yours Truly Ideologically cannot but wonder if there are any empirical evidence of how much the country may have lost in terms of revenue be it in terms of a reduced number of tourists into the country who could not travel to the country due to the lack of a national airline. One reason for Air Namibia’s shutdown was its heavy-heavy dependence on the government. Understandably because it was wholly government-owned. Another factor was its management and/or proper its mismanagement. It would be interesting what the ownership model this time around would be. Not to mention its management. Because looking at most government and/or semi-government institutions, especially the ones that are supposed to do business, they leave much to be desired in terms of making business and becoming financially independent from the government let alone sustainable.
Arguably the absence of a national airline negatively impacts a country’s economy by hindering tourism and investment, reducing job creation, and causing revenue losses to foreign carriers. Thus, air transport is crucial for global business and trade, and without a strong national airline, a country misses out on opportunities to become a regional hub, facilitate exports, attract tourists, and benefit from the multiplier effects of a thriving aviation ecosystem. But be that as it may is a national airline for Namibia a priority and why. Especially in view of many other pressing priorities for the country. Is spending on a national airline more a priority than spending on one of the priority sectors as per the current administration, which is agriculture? Not to mention the development and uplifting of rural populations. Going back to the roots of unlocking the potential of our rural communities which may also have a multiplier effect like not unleashing rural-urban migration and population explosions in the urban areas and their attendant socio-economic ills as a result of pressures on limited services.
According to the sixth National Development Plan (NDP6) poverty estimates in Namibia have increased in all segments of the population. With poverty headcount estimated to have increased from 19.7 percent in 2017 to 28.2 percent in 2023.
This translates into doubling the number of people classified as poor from 410,518 in 2017 to 852, 317 in 2024[i]. Eight out of fourteen regions are above the national average of 28.2 percent, while Kunene and Kavango East experienced the highest poverty levels, recording 56.7 percent and 58.1 percent, respectively.
Omusati and Kavango East have highest number of people living in poverty; 110,240 and 118,580, respectively.
This means the country highly prioritises its spending with greater if not exclusively focusing on its adopted development pillars, one of them being Agriculture. It is axiomatic, Namibia being an agrarian country, and industrialisation for now only a distant pipedream, and most of her population, that is 49% , living in the rural areas, that due regard be given to Agriculture. Cognisant of the requisite need and quest for diversification in Agriculture. But surely in view of the evident urgency for rural development , and the modernisation of Agriculture, an airline cannot be a priority competing for the chronic scarce resources which lately has rendered the Namibian budget still extremely austere. Notwithstanding an improvement in revenue collection.
But most importantly, Yours Truly Ideologically cannot but think of a healthy balance between a natural development and progression by the people themselves with the necessary push by the government. To pen off Yours Truly Ideologically cannot but reminded of a hypothesis by the late eminent African scholar and ideologue, Samir Amin, once hypothesising: The ultimate reason of development failure in Sub-Sahara Africa is that the region has not initiated the world of intensive agricultural process. While this necessary agricultural revolution implies an industrialisation which has not been initiated. Namibia was not born then when Dr Amin hypothesized. But today we have a true Namibia with a new president one of her pillars being Agriculture. One cannot but wonders how Dr Amin’s hypothesis dovetails with Namibia’s president’s Agricultural pillar?
