DBN’s Chief Executive Officer, Martin Inkumbi during the announcement of the four-year plan. (Photograph by Musa Carter)
The manufacturing industry topped the list of the three sectors which are going to be the Development Bank of Namibia’s focus in the recently announced four-year plan for the period 2014 to 2018. Development Bank CEO, Martin Inkumbi, said the 2014 to 2018 strategy is projected to grow its loan book to N$2 billion with 24.8 % growth more than that of last year when the total value of the loan book came to N$1.75 billion. The Development Bank of Namibia is to place particular emphasis on three sectors identified by NDP 4 namely manufacturing, tourism and transport and logistics. Manufacturing enterprises are allocated the lending value of N$750 million whilst tourism got N$450 million and N$330 million is set aside for transport and logistics. Inkumbi identified infrastructure development as a key priority pointing to development of serviced erven and energy distribution. He said the Bank has a sound track record of development of residential land and low cost housing, and that the priority to develop affordable housing is a point where the Bank could make a significant contribution. He added that the Bank would also give emphasis to development of enterprise in rural areas.
Talking about rural potential, he said the Bank would not finance agriculture, as this is the ambit of the Agriculture Bank, but the Development Bank would seek opportunities to finance secondary and tertiary industries related to agriculture, as a source of employment, as well as a key underpinning of food security. Inkumbi later said the Bank would begin to focus particularly on women and youth entrepreneurs as special focus categories in their four year plan. He described them as key drivers of Namibia’s future economy.
