Shacks double since 2011
Unemployment figures kept under wraps for now
An influx of people seeking better opportunities has resulted in Khomas topping the list of regions with the most informal dwellings.
The final report on Namibia’s 2023 population and housing census has painted a grim picture of the country’s precarious housing situation, with statistics indicating that the number of shacks has more than doubled since 2011.According to the report, released by the Namibia Statistics Agency yesterday, there are currently 756 339 households in the country, of which 28.7% (217 000) are informal dwellings.
About 87 000 of all shacks are in urban areas, with the Khomas Region having the highest number of urban people living in makeshift homes - which includes shacks set up in sprawling informal settlements.
Khomas tops the list with almost 68 000 (46.9%) of the 144 630 households being informal dwellings, followed by Omaheke where 13 190 of the 28 188 households are informal dwellings.
Local authorities have in recent years indicated that the number of shacks has skyrocketed since a spike in land occupations across the country since 2014.
The current national housing backlog stands at 300 000.
Omusati has the fewest informal dwellings, with only 5 939 of the 72 437 households being informal dwellings.
Unemployment at 34%
Regarding the population figures, NSA CEO Alex Shimuafeni said there have been questions asked in recent months as to how the Namibian population grew from 2.1 million to three million within 11 years by September 2023.
“We have the micro-data that proves where people were during the census. The population grew by 43% from 2011,” he said.
Shimuafeni added that the unemployment rate was around 34%. “The exact report on the unemployment rate and employment will be presented in January 2025,” he said.
“The population in urban areas is 1 494 992 people and only a slight majority, namely 1 527 409 (2.1% more) people live in rural areas,” he announced.
Khomas has the largest population (494 000), most of whom live in Windhoek, followed by Omusati with 310 000 inhabitants.
Meanwhile, 70% of the population lives in Namibia’s 10 largest towns, led by Windhoek, Walvis Bay and Rundu. A total of 756 339 households were counted; the average household size nationwide was 3.8 people - compared to 2011’s 4.4 people.
Ohangwena has the highest population density at 31.5 people per square kilometre, while //Karas has the lowest population density at 0.7 people per square kilometre.
Young Namibia
People under the age of 35 constitute 71.1% of the population, of which 1.1 million are between zero and 14 years old. Around a million people are between 15 and 24 years old, while 22% of the population are between 35 and 96 years old (605 000 people).
“Only about 176 000 of them receive the state pension. The rest seem to have private pension insurance, but it is clear that some people who can receive the state pension have not yet been recorded,” the report noted.
More than 90% of the population has access to clean drinking water, but only 46% of all households have flush toilets, the report showed.
According to the report, around 52.4% of all households have a smartphone and 47.2% have a radio. It also found that 41% of households have a refrigerator, while around 46% have an oven for cooking.