The president calls the situation “unfortunate.”
TIRI MASAWI
The Namibia Green Hydrogen Programme is struggling to pay its staff as severe funding challenges threaten its future.
Since its launch in 2023, the programme has primarily relied on grants from development partners, including N$800 million (around €40 million) from Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research, and additional support from the Dutch Government through Invest International. These funds supported pilot plants, scholarships, Namibia’s first green hydrogen bus, and the development of a national green hydrogen strategy.
Now, as the initial German grant lapses and no government funding has been committed, the programme is struggling to cover operational costs, including salaries, leaving staff and operations in a precarious position.
Presidential Press Secretary Jonas Mbambo told the Namibia Business Review that the government has not yet decided how-or-if it will fund the programme beyond its initial grant.
“Her Excellency the President is aware of the situation, and it is indeed very unfortunate. At this stage, no decision has been taken on whether the government will take over the funding of the programme,” he said. Mbambo said the government is currently managing several competing priorities across different sectors.
“But this does not in any way diminish the importance of the Green Hydrogen Programme to our national development agenda,” he said.
The programme currently employs nine senior staff, following the departures of its former green hydrogen commissioner James Mnyupe, and Legal Manager Services Roswitha Gomachas earlier this month, along with six additional non-managerial staff.
Mbambo said “The President will consult the relevant stakeholders to determine the most appropriate way forward. We appreciate your patience and understanding as these discussions progress.”
When asked whether the treasury might step in, Ministry of Finance Executive Director Michael Humavindu referred questions to the programme itself.
POWER POLITICS AT PLAY
A source close to the programme said political support has waned under the new administration.
“Since the new administration came in there has not been enough political will to support the programme. It is also worsened by the fact that most of the people that are supposed to be prioritising the programme are not big fans of green hydrogen,” the source said.
“Some of the Executive Directors have been reluctant to understand how the programme operates and have not been welcoming to learn about the green hydrogen industry. This has been a challenge because they are not willing to brief the president properly on the benefits of the programme, the industry. They are also not keen to know more about the industry,” the source added.
Programme spokesperson Jona Musheko could neither confirm nor deny the financial struggles but emphasised the initiative’s importance:
“The programme was established by the government to support the development of the green hydrogen industry. Through this mandate, the programme engages all stakeholders in the hydrogen industry and plays a facilitation role,” he said,
Given the significance and critical role the sector plays in socioeconomic development, Musheko said the role and sustainability of the programme is central to the industry’s potential.
“Therefore, the programme cannot be seen independently of the sector it serves. Since 2023, operations have been primarily funded through development partners, including the Dutch Government via Invest International,” he said.
CHALLENGES AHEAD
Martha Haipinge, a governance practitioner with the United Nations in Zambia and PhD candidate at the University of Namibia, warned that the programme’s lack of formal integration into Namibia’s governance framework leaves it vulnerable.
Writing in a column in The Namibia Business Review Haipinge whose interest focuses on public-sector governance and institutional reform said the green hydrogen programme sits at the intersection of energy, investment, environment, and diplomacy, yet,somehow, belonged completely to none.
“When an initiative floats between ministries without a legally defined home, clear budget line, or dedicated implementing agency, its continuity depends on personalities. Once those personalities move on, coordination stalls. That is not a failure of talent/skills; it is a failure of structure,” she said
She said if processes were done right, a well-institutionalised green hydrogen programme would have a statutory or cabinet-approved framework setting out mandates and accountability lines, technical and policy units nested in relevant ministries and integration into national planning instruments and budget processes.
“The absence of that would expose any programme to political transitions no matter how visionary. This is what we are currently witnessing.
“The suggestion that no senior leader has matched the departing head’s fluency in finance, policy, or global diplomacy is not only speculative, but it also risks insulting a capable nation. Namibia has produced leaders, scientists, and negotiators who have represented it competently across sectors both national and at global stage. To imply that one individual’s exit equates to the loss of national intellect is to understate our institutional potential,” she said.
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