Namibia, Home to the Nomadic people

Durban, South Africa, November 12, 2014 (Newswire.com) - The name of the country is derived from the Namib Desert, considered to be the oldest desert in the world. Situated between the Namib and the Kalahari deserts, Namibia experiences the least rainfall in sub-Saharan Africa.

The Namibian landscape consists generally of five geographical areas, each with its own unique biotic characteristic. Although deserts occupy much of the country, it boasts game-rich grasslands and a semi-arid Central Plateau.

However enticing this may sound, jobs in general are hard to come by and around a third of Namibian citizens are unemployed. Financial intermediation remains uneven across the country, and scarce access to credit and banking services discourages any entrepreneurial activity. The upside is that there is no minimum capital requirement for starting a business, but completing licensing requirements now takes over 100 days, causing further impediments for new business owners ultimately affecting economic growth.

President Hifikepunye Pohamba who won a second five-year term in 2009, explains that Namibia is rich in minerals, but weak property rights and poor infrastructure impede growth and development leaving unemployment in the formal sector a serious problem.

Official corruption remains a major difficulty, and any criminal justice investigations of major cases proceed at a leisurely pace. The rule of law remains weak and access to justice is obstructed by economic and geographic barriers, a shortage of public defenders, and delays.

The Namibian economy is heavily dependent on the extraction and processing of minerals for export. Mining accounts for 11.5% of GDP, but impressively provides more than 50% of foreign exchange earnings. Namibia boasts the world’s fourth-largest producer of uranium used to fuel nuclear power stations.

However, the highest-earning mining export is diamonds. Namibia’s diamonds are found in the deposits of old river beds. Most were probably washed down from the highlands by the Orange River which remains a popular attraction for explorers and inquisitive tourists. Namibia doesn’t have a warm coastline, and lures mostly safari enthusiasts. Even so, Namibia has been growing in popularity as a tourist destination.

The main attractions are the country’s stunning landscapes, its wildlife and large areas of untainted wilderness. To ensure the tourism economy develops ethically, many community-development schemes have been implemented to ensure locals benefit from the presence of tourists whereby, locals offer services, such as taking tourists on guided walks or providing items such as firewood. This initiative was created by the Namibia Community-Based Tourism Association (NACOBTA) as a development programme for the community.

Many environmentally-delicate areas have national park status in Namibia. The most enticing attractions that draw thousands of travellers annually is the Skeleton Coast Park. The northern area is designated a ‘wilderness area’ for strict conservation. Tourist numbers are tightly controlled and only one company has consent to fly visitors into the restricted north.

Along the shore of The Skeleton Coast are the remains many shipwrecked boats. They provide additional evidence to urban legends about the dangers of the coastline, surrounded by off-shore reefs and thick fogs. There are many stories about shipwrecked sailors who tried to walk through the barren Namibian landscape in search of food and water but once stranded the men stood little chance of survival. With human remains among the bones left by whale and seal hunters, there is no doubting the reasoning behind its name.

Local people called the northern coastal region ‘The Land God Made in Anger’. Portuguese sailors however named it ‘The Gates of Hell’.

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