Namibia has placed financial inclusion at the centre of its development agenda, as Finance Minister Ericah Shafudah underscored the importance of accessible financial systems in tackling entrenched socio-economic disparities. The statement was delivered at the 2025 Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) Global Policy Forum currently underway in Swakopmund, a gathering that has convened central bank governors, policymakers, and development practitioners from across the world.
Minister Shafudah highlighted that Namibia remains one of the most unequal societies globally, a reality rooted in exclusionary structures inherited from colonialism and apartheid. Although Namibia gained independence in 1990, the persistence of inequalities remains visible in economic participation, particularly among historically marginalised communities.
“Access to financial services must be understood as a pathway to empowerment rather than a peripheral policy goal,” Shafudah stated, noting that financial inclusion in Namibia has progressed from 51 percent in 2011 to 78 percent of adults in 2025, according to figures consistent with the Bank of Namibia’s Financial Inclusion Survey.
Despite this progress, approximately 22 percent of Namibians remain outside the formal financial system, with women, young people, rural dwellers, persons with disabilities, and those working in the informal economy disproportionately excluded. Shafudah argued that genuine financial inclusion extends beyond account ownership and requires enabling citizens to save, invest, and withstand economic shocks.
The minister further emphasised the necessity of international cooperation, asserting that global forums must move beyond symbolic gestures. She called for targeted resources and policy frameworks that enable countries in the Global South to advance inclusive finance on their own terms, with solutions attuned to local realities.
Namibia’s hosting of the AFI forum illustrates broader regional aspirations to shape financial governance in ways that respond to African contexts rather than replicating external models. With over 70 nations represented, the gathering serves not only as a platform for dialogue but also as a space to re-imagine developmental finance in ways that are structurally transformative.
The challenges faced by Namibia resonate across Southern Africa, where legacies of dispossession continue to define patterns of wealth distribution. Efforts to promote financial inclusion, therefore, form part of a wider continental pursuit of equity, sovereignty, and sustainable growth.
As Shafudah affirmed, “financial inclusion must ultimately restore economic agency to citizens,” positioning it as a cornerstone of Namibia’s long-term development vision and a critical dimension of Africa’s collective efforts to overcome historical inequities.
