By:Nghiinomenwa-vali Erastus
Of all the business establishments existing in the country, 56% were found in rural areas.
This is according to the Census Mapping Report done between 2019-2021 by the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA).
The findings come at the time when more people are flocking to the cities for green pastures to seek employment as the prevailing consensus is that urban areas offer more economic opportunities.
The NSA did an assessment of business establishments by area in the country, which found that the total number of establishments stood at 61,502.
Of the total establishment, 56.9% were situated in rural areas and 43.1% in urban areas.
The rural business establishment also raises questions on the operationality and commercial capacity of rural enterprises given the flocking of people to urban areas to find opportunities.
In terms of regional distribution, the NSA report shows that Omusati and Ohangwena regions reported the highest number of accommodation and food service activities, with the number of establishments recorded standing at 11,055 and 9,580, respectively.
For establishments operating in rural areas, Kavango West and Omusati regions accounted for 89.9% and 89.4%, respectively.
When it comes to urban areas, Khomas and Erongo dominate business establishments.
Many of the established businesses (30,212) in the country are in the category of accommodation and food service activities, followed by the wholesale and retail trade that registered 15,496 established businesses.
Coming third is the other services sector which has 3,684 businesses establishments followed by 2,996 businesses offering educational services.
The country also registered 2,854 business establishments that categorise themselves as manufacturing.
Despite the country’s dependence on agricultural activities, the country has only 396 business establishments that register themselves to be participating in the agriculture, forestry and fishing.
Ownership is spread from sole proprietor, close corporations, limited liability companies and government.
Notable is government involvement in the education provision in the country, as the statistics shows that 68,5% of the educational enterprises are owned by government.
Government ownership also dominates in the water sector, however, the state presence in the mining and quarrying has not been documented. Email: erastus@thevillager.com.na