The Mott Foundation is funding a national pitch competition, inviting K-12 students in all 50 states to submit innovative ideas.

Organizers propose creative ideas to enhance Templeton's farmers market and engage youth entrepreneurs.

Jennifer Leech Harlow addresses economic development strategies, including youth entrepreneurship and childcare.

Government rolls out N$500 million Youth Entrepreneurship Fund  Namibia Economist

Hertta-Maria Amutenja The ministry of finance will establish an integrated data platform to track the National Youth Entrepreneurship Fund (NYEF) in real time. Minister of finance Ericah Shafudah announced the plan during a briefing to the National Assembly this week.  “This platform will enable real-time monitoring, improve decision-making, and ensure that the Fund remains adaptive and responsive to the needs of the youth segment,” Shafudah said. The system will link all development finance institutions (DFIs) responsible for disbursing funds, including the Development Bank of Namibia (DBN), the Agricultural Bank of Namibia (Agribank), and the Environmental Investment Fund (EIF).  Namibia Post Limited (NamPost) has indicated it is not yet ready to participate but has expressed willingness to join once operationally prepared. The platform will also connect to other ministries and agencies that support youth initiatives.  “The centralised system will connect to all OMAs supporting youth initiatives, promoting inter-institutional collaboration, reducing duplication of funding, and improving overall resource allocation,” Shafudah said. The NYEF has an initial allocation of N$257 million for the 2025/26 financial year. It is designed to empower young Namibians to start, sustain, and expand businesses across multiple sectors. The fund also includes an endowment component to ensure sustainability. According to Shafudah, “Interest income generated from the capital can be reinvested on a revolving basis, providing ongoing financial support for youth enterprises while attracting additional resources from external financiers.” The fund will implement monitoring and evaluation systems to measure outcomes. These will include the number of enterprises initiated, sustained, or expanded; employment created and the delivery of mentoring, coaching, and advisory support. “These measures will track the effectiveness of resource mobilisation through the endowment capital,” Shafudah said. Hosted within the ministry of finance, the NYEF will use multiple DFIs as conduits to finance youth enterprises. This approach is expected to reduce delays that often came from relying on a single channel. A pilot phase ran from 1 August to 4 September 2025 to test youth engagement, application writing and planning skills, and readiness for the full roll-out.  Regional governors will now submit applications to the ministry, which will work with DFIs to adjudicate and select successful proposals. “The ministry of finance will develop a data and monitoring platform that will link the underlying lending conduits to ensure an adequate management information system. The integrated data system, along with partners, will track youth businesses annually, using digital tools for beneficiary feedback and data collection,” Shafudah said. The platform is part of a broader government strategy to strengthen youth entrepreneurship, support economic inclusion, and contribute to the sixth National Development Plan (NDP6). Young entrepreneurs reacted with mixed views. Business owner Taimi Nghipandulwa, who runs an agri-processing start-up in Ongwediva, said she hopes the system will improve transparency.  “In the past, applying for youth funds was frustrating because there was no feedback or clear communication. If this platform makes it easier to track applications, then it’s a big step forward,” she said. However, Joseph Iileka of CompSoft in Windhoek cautioned that digital systems alone may not solve deeper challenges.  “Access to funding is not just about monitoring. Many young people struggle with meeting collateral requirements or lack mentoring to structure their businesses properly,” he said.

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Justicia Shipena Procurement expert Mirjam Bauleth-Nashima has warned that without strong checks and balances, politically connected individuals could exploit the new code of good practices under the Public Procurement Act of 2015. The government recently announced amendments to the act to introduce guidelines that will give preferential treatment to SMEs, women-owned businesses, youth-owned enterprises, and previously disadvantaged individuals. The announcement was made by minister of international relations and trade Selma Ashipala-Musavyi during the third ministerial regional business engagement in the Zambezi Region. Bauleth-Nashima said the code aims to promote fairness but warned against sacrificing quality and cost. “The government’s intention to uplift SMEs, women, youth, and previously disadvantaged individuals is clear in terms of principles. The act stipulates mandatory requirements that should be met by all companies participating in tenders. Preferential treatment should not supersede the quality of goods, work, or services required. To safeguard government entities, the substantially lowest responsive bidder should at all times be awarded,” she told the Windhoek Observer. She said deliberate programmes are needed to help smaller players meet procurement standards and compete fairly.  “This ensures that given a chance to participate in the bidding process, they will reach the final stage of the award, whereby the preferential treatment will be applied. Initiatives such as the National Youth Development Fund can help youth-owned businesses improve their capacity, source raw materials at affordable prices, and deliver quality goods and services.” Last month, the cabinet approved common guidelines for the operationalisation of the National Youth Development Fund, with an initial allocation of N$257 million and annual subsidies. The fund focuses on project entrepreneurship to help supported entities scale up and reach market maturity, with loan amounts segmented for startups and cooperatives seeking expansion. Bauleth-Nashima stressed that transparency is critical, especially given past allegations of corruption.  “Although the rules are in black and white, it takes ethics, morals, and integrity to follow them. Transparency can be achieved if every step of the process, from initiation to awards, is made public,” she said. She added that procurement plans, bid invitations, and notices of award should be uploaded to government websites, with penalties for noncompliance. She also called for direct procurements, including emergency contracts, to be made public.  “Companies contracted within public entities should also be published and their performance regularly monitored. Public scrutiny should be taken seriously, and allegations must be followed up. Stakeholders’ and taxpayers’ concerns should not be undermined,” she said. Bauleth-Nashima urged strong checks on procurement professionals.  “The procurement professionals who form part of procurement management units, bid evaluation committees, and accounting offices in ministries must stand firm on principles and ethics. Rigorous vetting of these individuals and lifestyle audits of suspected individuals should form part of corruption monitoring,” she said. She also called for independent law enforcement.  “We should move from the concept of ‘innocent until proven guilty’ to guilty, with substantial evidence, until proven innocent. The president’s call for corruption to be treated as treason should be applied without fear or favour. That is the only way we will see a shift in mismanagement and misappropriation of government resources,” Bauleth-Nashima said. Founder of BaseCamp, Jesaya Hano-Oshike, welcomed the amendment but stressed fairness.  “It is good that the youth, women, and underprivileged communities are also given preferential treatment. Especially those who don’t have a long-term record with the government can use this money to establish and build their businesses. So I think overall it’s a good thing,” he said. The procurement reforms are expected to open more opportunities for local businesses, including those in the informal sector.

By: Ketemba Tjipepa President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is expected to launch a National Youth Fund aimed at assisting young people access financing for their businesses. She said many youth-led businesses continue...

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