Containers are seen at the new container terminal in Walvis Bay, Namibia, Aug. 2, 2019. (Xinhua/Zhang Yu)
Namibia's economy rebounded to a positive growth rate for the first time in two years, growing 2.4 percent in 2021 compared to a contraction of 7.9 percent in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Namibia Statistics Agency.
WINDHOEK, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Namibia's economy rebounded to a positive growth rate for the first time in two years, growing by 2.4 percent in 2021 compared to a contraction of 7.9 percent recorded in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Namibia Statistics Agency said Thursday.
In a statement, Statistician General Alex Shimuafeni said following the relaxation of COVID-19 measures imposed in 2020 due to the receding pandemic, economic activities started to pick up in 2021.
The improved performance of the economy was observed in the Primary industry mainly in the mining and quarrying sector which posted a growth rate of 13.6 percent, he said.
Expanded economic activities in the Tertiary industries were driven by an increase in demand for goods and services resulting in improved performances in the wholesale and retail trade sector, which grew 6.1 percent following consistent contractions for the last four years, he said.
"Similar observation is evident in the transport sector, which jumped from a contraction of 22.7 percent witnessed in 2020 to a positive growth rate of 2.8 percent during the period under review. Demand for hospitality services started to pick up in 2021 resulting in the Hotels and Restaurants sector registering a growth of 10.4 percent during the period under review," he said.
The size of the economy as measured by nominal GDP stood at 180.8 billion Namibian dollars (about 12.5 billion US dollars) compared to 173.9 billion Namibian dollars registered in 2020. ■
