Namibia is ranked 108th in the
World Bank’s latest Ease of
Doing Business index.
Regionally, it rated sixth –
after Mauritius (49th globally),
Rwanda (56th), Botswana (71st),
South Africa (74th) and Kenya
(92nd).
In order for the Walvis Bay
corridors to reach their full
potential government and the
local industry are focusing on
the “Trading Across Borders”
ranking, where Namibia stands
at 127th out of 190 economies in
the world.
It has dropped four places from
2016.
There is a stark imbalance
between the costs of importing
and exporting, according to the
World Bank figures.
At US$208, the cost of
importing a shipment is nearly
75% less than that in South
Africa, where border and
documentary compliance costs
US$870.
However, the border and
documentary compliance costs
for exports from Namibia cost
US$1 093 per shipment, and those
for South Africa US$598.
Regionally, Namibia is ranked
sixth in sub-Saharan Africa in the
across borders category – behind
Botswana (51st), Mauritius (74th),
Rwanda (87th), Kenya (105th) and
Malawi (118th).
South Africa is ranked eighth in
the region, or 139th in the world.
Companies wanting to establish
Namibian will find it a challenge
to set up new businesses in the
country – it is ranked 170th out
of 190 in the “Ease of Starting a
Business” category.
Investing in property is also
cumbersome – which sees many
companies renting when first
moving into Namibia.
Registering a property requires
eight procedures, takes 52 days
and costs on average 13.8% of the
property value – placing Namibia
174th in the world and seventh in
sub-Saharan Africa.
South Africa is ranked 105th,
with top performer Rwanda
ranked fourth globally.
Obtaining the necessary
construction permit to build a
warehouse entails 10 procedures,
takes 137 days and costs 0.5% of
the warehouse value, according
to the World Bank. The country
is ranked 67th globally on this
score – above South Africa
(99th), and below Mauritius
(33rd), Botswana (50th) and
Malawi (65th).
Minority investors are not
as well protected as they are in
South Africa (22nd globally)
and Mauritius (32nd), but at
88th globally Namibia offers
the third-safest destination in
sub-Saharan Africa for minority
investors.
Financing the facility and its
equipment is relatively easier
– Namibia shares 62nd spot
globally on the ease of getting
credit. Regionally, it is easier to
obtain credit in Rwanda (ranked
second globally), Kenya (32nd)
and Mauritius (44th).
However, Namibia stands at
124th globally in the ranking
of 190 economies on the ease of
getting electricity. Regionally,
Kenya is ranked highest (106th),
followed by Mauritius (110th),
South Africa (111th) and Rwanda
(117th).
Once operational Namibia
stands at 74th in the ease of paying
taxes rating – fifth in the region,
with Mauritius (45th) and South
Africa (51st) ranked highest.
In 2016 Namibia made paying
taxes more complicated for
companies by introducing a new
vocational education and training
levy, according to the World Bank
report.
