Windhoek: Minister of Finance, Ericah Shafudah, presented the national budget in the National Assembly on Thursday, outlining a budget of N.dollars 106.3 billion for the 2025/26 financial year. Delivering her first budget statement, Shafudah announced that the budget represents a 4.9 per cent increase from the revised estimates of the previous financial year.
According to Namibia Press Agency, former Minister Iipumbu Shiimi had presented a N.dollars 100.1 billion budget for the 2024/25 financial year, which at the time, marked the largest budget in Namibia’s history. Shafudah added that the operational budget is estimated at N.dollars 79.8 billion, representing growth of 2.3 per cent over the 2024/25 financial year mid-term estimates.
‘To continue addressing infrastructure bottlenecks that weigh against our growth potential, the development budget has increased by 22.6 per cent to N.dollars 12.8 billion from the revised estimates for FY2024/25,’ Shafudah said.
Meanwhile, the government has budgeted N.dollars 13.7 billion to meet statutory debt servicing obligations, equivalent to 14.8 per cent of revenues and 4.9 per cent of GDP. The Ministry of Education, Innovation, Arts and Culture received the highest allocation of N.dollars 24.8 billion, while the Sport, Youth and National Service functions, which also fall under the education ministry, will receive N.dollars 1.3 billion.
The Ministry of Health and Social Services will receive N.dollars 12.3 billion. The Ministry of Finance has been allocated N.dollars 14.6 billion, including N.dollars 7.2 billion for various social grants.
The Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs is allocated N.dollars 7.5 billion, while the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security is allocated N.dollars 7.9 billion. The Ministry of Information and Communication Technology has been allocated N.dollars 898.5 million, and the budget for the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development is set at N.dollars 2.7 billion.
The Office of the Prime Minister will receive N.dollars 636 million, and the National Assembly will get N.dollars 398.2 million. The Office of the President is allocated N.dollars 1.5 billion. The Ministry of International Relations and Trade will receive N.dollars 1.2 billion, and the budget for the Ministry of Mines, Energy and Industry is set at N.dollars 939.5 million.
A total of N.dollars 797.6 million has been budgeted for the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, as well as N.dollars 473.6 million for the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare.