VERIPUAMI KANGUMINE
Namibia’s creative sector is calling for an independent Ministry of Arts and Culture, arguing that the industry is being sidelined within the large education-led portfolio.
Before the current administration of President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, education and sport were run as separate ministries. Now they have been merged into one large ministry but cracks appear to be already showing.
The push comes as the government acknowledges structural weaknesses, while Education Minister Sanet Steenkamp moves to secure full administrative control of all departments under her ministry.
The debate has taken on a clear economic dimension, with creatives pointing to a sector that generated about N$47 million from local and foreign film production last year, alongside 1 240 temporary jobs worth N$18.86 million in catering, transport, hospitality and production services during the 2024/25 financial year.
At the same time, presidential spokesperson Jonas Mbambo last week admitted to Namibia Business Review that the arts and culture portfolio is struggling within the current structure, citing limited prioritisation, funding pressures and weak institutional coordination.
“We are actively considering measures to strengthen visibility, coordination and developmental impact,” Mbambo said, adding that education pressures, serving more than 800 000 learners, continue to dominate budget allocation.
STRUCTURALLY IGNORED
Playwright and actor Ndjamba Linyondi says currently the creative sector is being treated as a secondary function within the broader education mandate and stunting its growth.
“Namibia’s creative sector holds immense untapped potential, yet it continues to operate on the margins of national development. For years, budgetary priorities have largely favored education, with arts and culture receiving only a small share of attention and resources.”
He added “While education is undeniably vital, combining it with arts and culture under a single ministry has limited the growth, visibility, and strategic development of the creative industry.”
Linyondi said that countries that have invested in their creative industries have seen tangible economic returns as the creative economy is recognised as contributing significantly to GDP, job creation, tourism and international cultural exchange.
He said that the gap in access to arts education and professional development opportunities only remain concentrated in a few institutions, leaving many regions without meaningful access to creative training programmes.
The filmmaker added that institutions such as the National Arts Council of Namibia are already making meaningful efforts to support the sector within existing limitations and need more support from the government and the private sector to unlock their full impact.
“For this reason, the establishment of an independent Ministry of Arts and Culture should be considered a strategic national objective. Such a ministry would allow for dedicated policy development, targeted funding, and focused industry growth, positioning the creative sector as a legitimate contributor to the economy rather than a peripheral activity,” he said.
The creative industry created 1 240 temporary jobs earning about N$18.86 million in catering, transportation, hospitality, crew, cast and production in the 2024/2025 financial year.
The ministry of education was allocated N$28.7 billion during the national budget for the 2026/2027 financial year, prioritising education, national development and sports.
Subsidised tertiary education and school congestion alleviation received N$2.8 billion, with N$939 million having been allocated for developmental projects, while the sport, youth and national service received N$750 million.
Last year, the government injected N$50 million into the creative arts industry in its 2025/2026 budget.
This year the ministry announced that it will invest N$ 10 million to revive the popular Namibian Annual Music Awards (NAMAs) after Mobile Telecommunications (MTC) pulled out of funding and it lay dormant for six years.
SURVIVAL FUNDING
Poet and designer Patricia Uapunduka also calls on the stand-alone Ministry for Arts and Culture due to the lack of infrastructure for the creatives such as recording studios, equipment lending services and facilities and proper facilities for poets and performing artists to perform.
“I agree with the standalone ministry because art is not always recognised. We are always being left out especially regarding space, equipment that we need to create arts,” she said.
She said that the poets and other creatives have been forced to fund their own events due to a lack of sponsorship and delay in response from the ministry.
She said there is a lack of recognition of smaller disciplines such as poetry as compared to other larger disciplines such as music which have platforms such as the NAMAs.
“We want a warehouse of equipment where creatives can pay a small fee for recording equipment and microphones,” she said.
Visual artist and designer Jean-Claude Tjitamunisa said that a stand-alone ministry of arts and culture will allow the creative sector to bring in more money for the Namibian economy than what it currently has generated.
“The distribution of the budget is not fair, the creative industry is just as important as education. We need the stand-alone ministry that caters to the creative.
“If we have a stand-alone ministry, the creative sector will generate more revenue for the Namibian economy than what it currently is generating,” he said.
The visual said that though there are scholarships available for the creative sector through the youth funding through the National Arts Council more needs to be mentorship and funding.
He said that the creatives need more opportunities through places of performance, sewing machines studios and skill development.
“Beyond places of performance it would be great to have places where people can receive skill development where if you’re an upcoming fashion designer or visual artist there are studios where one can rent for a fee per month,” he said.
EDUCATION IS PRIORITY
Presidential spokesperson Jonas Mbambo admitted that the arts and culture are overshadowed within the current ministry structure and that the government is working towards improving the sector’s viability.
“The concern is legitimate and increasingly evident. After a year of observing the operational realities within the current structure, it has become clear that Arts and Culture face challenges relating to prioritisation, institutional focus and resource allocation,”
“These concerns are therefore receiving serious attention, and the government is actively considering measures to strengthen the sector’s visibility, coordination and developmental impact within the broader national agenda,” he said.
Mbambo explained that the sector has not received sufficient infrastructure development, financing and implementation of programmes due to priority and budget allocation being given to the education sector which has to accommodate over 800,000 learners.
He said that though a stand-alone Ministry for Arts and Culture would allow for concentrated policy attention it will also face budgetary challenges.
The spokesperson added that the Ministry of Education is currently leading efforts to establish the necessary instruments to provide project grants, bursaries for Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs) through related studies, funding for artists, partnerships and sponsorship.
He also noted that the government has administered funding support through the National Arts Council of Namibia which is expected to introduce a funding line for equipment, facilities and materials, with an allocation of approximately N$2.5 million.
Mbambo said the government also plans the expansion of support for the creative and cultural industries with N$50 million injection into the creative industries sector, which is currently being implemented through strategic tertiary institutions and partners with the Namibia Film Commission and the National Theatre.
“Despite financial constraints, the government remains the largest investor and supporter of the arts and creative industries sector in Namibia, both through direct funding and institutional development initiatives,” he said.
“For example, the Namibia Film Commission (NFC) is expected to roll out a Local Content Creation Programme during the 2026 financial year, while the National Theatre of Namibia (NTN) has collaborated with the Directorate of Arts on initiatives such as the Namibian Music Awards,” he said.
FULL CONTROL
Namibia Business Review reported in April that the Minister of education, innovation, youth, sport, arts, and culture Sanet Steenkamp is pushing for full control of all the departments under her ministry.
Education minister Steenkamp says the new structure is still fragmented, with departments operating in silos instead of as one system. Steenkamp told the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Youth, Civic Relations and Community Development last week that the ministry has been trying to get a new structure approved for about a year through the Office of the Prime Minister.
“We wanted full integration. For example, we want Namibia Student Financial Assistance Fund’s (NSFAF) human resources to be the same as the ministry’s,” she said.
However, she said the NSFAF was approved as a separate department, with its own structure and 91 staff members.
She wants all departments fully integrated to improve efficiency and management.
Steenkamp said the current setup creates duplication, especially in procurement and human resources.
Steenkamp said some departments, including sports, youth and national service, are also still operating separately.
“Those departments were approved on their own and are not integrated with finance and administration of the ministry,” she said.
She said this means the ministry is still not operating as one system, as originally planned.
“It’s still departmentalised. We wanted one procurement system and shared skills, but that has not happened,” she said.
She added that while a structure has now been approved, it is not what the ministry had hoped for.
“We have a structure, but it’s not what we wanted,” she said.
Public policy analyst Ndumba Kamwanyah warned that fully merging all departments may not bring the efficiency the minister expects.
He said a larger structure could weaken accountability.
“When things go wrong, it becomes harder to know who is responsible,” he said.
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