Namibia Compact

In July 2008, the Millennium Challenge Corporation signed a five-year, $304.5 million compact with the Government of Namibia to reduce poverty and accelerate economic growth. The compact seeks to improve the quality of education and training for underserved populations, and attempts to capitalize on Namibia’s comparative advantages (e.g., large areas of semi-arid communal land suitable for livestock, and diverse wildlife and unique landscapes ideal for ecotourism) to increase the incomes of poor Namibians in the northern areas of the country.

For the most up-to-date information on implementation progress, please read the Quarterly Status Report.

This project will target investments to improve the economic performance of the livestock sector in the northern area of the country. The project aims to increase the productivity and profitability of livestock by strengthening the land tenure system, introducing improved rangeland and livestock management practices, and improving animal health services and livestock marketing efficiencies. This project will also support the growth of the indigenous natural products (INPs) sector. The Agriculture Project is comprised of the following activities: 

  • Improve the communal land regime and introduce effective community-based rangeland and livestock management activities;
  • Support the construction of five veterinary centers in the underserved Northern Communal Areas and rehabilitation of two quarantine camps in the Caprivi region; and
  • Provide a livestock traceability system to improve herd management and market-entry requirements; and a market efficiency fund to alleviate challenges that are present in the current supply chain; and
  • Assist in increasing the volume, quality, and value addition of the indigenous natural products that Primary Producer Organizations (PPOs) collect and harvest, and to advance PPOs operational and business capacity.
  • Project Amount: $47,000,000.00

The Education Project seeks to improve the education sector’s effectiveness, efficiency and quality through infrastructure improvements, institutional strengthening, policy reform and targeted technical assistance to ensure sustainable results. This project is comprised of the following activities:

  • Improve access to and management of textbooks;
  • Construct Regional Study and Resource Centers in underserved areas in an effort to improve access to documentation, information resources, training materials and programs, and study facilities;
  • Expand access to tertiary education through assisting the Ministry of Education in its efforts to establish a sustainable and more widely accessible tertiary and technical education finance system;
  • Strengthen to the Ministry of Education’s HIV/AIDS Management Unit and develop HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention plans related to construction activities;
  • Bolster the quality of general education through the improvement of infrastructure and equipment in approximately 47 primary and secondary school campuses; and
  • Improve vocational and skills training through the establishment of a National Train­ing Fund within the Namibia Training Authority.
  • Project Amount: $145,000,000.00

This project aims to improve the management and infrastructure of Etosha National Park, enhance the marketing of Namibian tourism, and develop the capacity of communal con­servancies to attract investments in ecotourism and capture a greater share of the revenue generated by tourism. Together, these activities will increase incomes and create employment opportunities for some of the poorest populations in Namibia, while conserving the natural resources that serve as the basis for the tourism industry. This project is comprised of the following activities:

  • Improve the management capacity of Etosha National Park (ENP), promote private sector investment in tourism enterprises around the park, increase tourism revenue nationally;
  • Increase tourist arrivals to Namibia by expanding marketing of Namibia as a tourist destination, developing and marketing local and regional tourism route packages, and developing a fully interactive website for the Namibia Tourism Board.
  • Assist Namibia in building conservancy capacity to protect natural resources, attract investment, and achieve financial sustainability so that households in communal conservancy areas (or conservancies) can receive a greater share of revenues.
  • Project Amount: $67,000,000.00

Success Stories

Press Releases

Blog Entries

Speeches & Testimony

Photos & Video

  • Oshikulufitu Combined School Student
    Video, 6/08/2011

    Oshikulufitu Combined School Student

     

    06/08/2011

    In June 2011 MCC CEO Daniel Yohannes met with students in Namibia who study in new schools funded by MCC’s Namibia Compact. The education project includes infrastructure improvements, institutional strengthening, and policy reform to ensure sustainable results.

  • MCC in Africa, 2011
    Slideshow, 5/25/2011

    MCC in Africa, 2011

     

    05/25/2011

    With nearly 70 percent of MCC’s portfolio benefiting the people of Africa, MCC is investing in solutions for long-term prosperity that Africans themselves are designing.  These projects include building transportation networks, increasing agricultural productivity throughout the entire value chain, improving water supply and sanitation, expanding health, education, and community services, and broadening access to finance for greater enterprise development.

  • MCC in Africa
    Video, 7/01/2009

    MCC in Africa

     

    07/01/2009

    A brief introduction to the Millennium Challenge Corporation and its efforts to reduce poverty throughout Africa.

  • Compact Signing Ceremony with Namibia
    Video, 7/28/2008

    Compact Signing Ceremony with Namibia

     

    07/28/2008

    At a signing ceremony on July 28, 2008 in the Windhoek, Namibia, MCC and the Director General of the Namibian National Planning Commission (NPC) signed a $304.5 million poverty reduction grant. The signing was witnessed by the Right Honorable Nahas Angula, Prime Minister of Namibia, Dennise Mathieu, United States Ambassador to Namibia and a number of Namibian and US officials and stakeholders. The five-year Compact will help strengthen access to and quality of Namibia’s education and training sector, increase   productivity of farm enterprises in communal rural areas and promote growth in Namibia’s tourism industry.

Events & Transcripts

Congressional Notifications

Country Scorecards

U.S. Government Links

Key Docs

MCA Contacts
MCC Contacts
  • Kyra Khanna
    Millennium Challenge Corporation
  • John Wingle
    Resident Country Director, Namibia
    Millennium Challenge Corporation
    (+264) 61 295 8524