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Standard Bank Namibia has selected 40 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) from a pool of 695 applicants to take part in its inaugural Blue Growth Series, launched in August 2025.
Over four months, the participating businesses received structured training and mentorship at the bank’s headquarters, aimed at strengthening their operational capacity and improving their readiness for investment. According to senior communications manager Elzita Beukes, the programme was designed to support long-term business expansion and reinforce MSMEs’ role in the country’s economic development.
She emphasised that the Blue Growth Series is more than a training initiative — it serves as a catalyst for sustainable business growth, aligned with the bank’s commitment under the motto, “Namibia is Home, and We Drive Her Growth.” Women-owned enterprises made up 45% of the cohort, reflecting the bank’s focus on inclusivity and gender equity. Participants completed over 40 hours of intensive learning, which covered business formalisation in collaboration with the Business and Intellectual Property Authority, the Namibia Revenue Agency and the Social Security Commission.
The programme also helped businesses establish new banking relationships and supported sector-specific development across industries such as construction, agriculture, crafts, food and beverage, ICT, beauty, retail and manufacturing. Certifications were provided through Harvard ManageMentor and Bloomberg Finance Lab, delivered in partnership with the Namibia Investment and Finance Academy.
One of the pitching-session winners, Ontoko Poultry founder Jane Auala, said the programme significantly strengthened her company’s operational and financial management skills, and encouraged other startups to participate in future cohorts. Standard Bank indicated it is considering expanding the Blue Growth Series beyond this pilot, with the intention of making it a permanent component of its MSME support strategy.
MSMEs — both formal and informal — remain central to Namibia’s economic structure, contributing a high volume of businesses, substantial employment, and a meaningful share of output. However, many remain informal, under-capitalised and vulnerable, reflected in high failure rates and a relatively limited number of formally registered enterprises. Initiatives like the Blue Growth Series are therefore vital, offering support in formalisation, capacity building, finance access, institutional linkages and sector-specific development. As Namibia works toward its NDP6 goal of raising MSME GDP contribution to nearly 20% by 2030 and bringing more informal enterprises into the formal sector, such programmes play an essential role in driving national economic progress.
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Current estimates indicate that Namibia has around 33,700 MSMEs, of which roughly 15,000 are formally registered. These businesses provide employment and income for approximately 160,000 people — around one third of the national workforce. While official figures commonly place MSMEs’ contribution to GDP at about 12%, more recent policy documents under the Sixth National Development Plan (NDP6) suggest this share rose to around 16% in 2022. The government aims to increase the sector’s GDP contribution to about 19.4% by 2030 and to formalise a significant share of informal enterprises. In 2024, another official estimated that around 40,000 SMEs support the livelihoods of more than 200,000 people while contributing a similar ~12% to GDP. Yet survival remains a major challenge, with some studies suggesting up to 90% of SMEs fail within their first five years.
