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Namibian Brand Assessment

! The Republic of Namibia is a country with great economic potential that couldrival next-door neighbor Botswana if the proper branding techniques are applied inmuch the same way that Botswana is shifting their economy to one based on upper-scale eco-tourism. Namibia has natural resources to power their economy duringtowards this goal, and in 2010, both Botswana and Namibia exported over USD 4 billionin products and goods. However, Namibia has yet to reach the acclaim of Botswanabecause of the lack of knowledge about Namibian products and the possibilities fortourism. The seven areas below will discuss the strengths and weaknesses thatNamibia will encounter as they attempt to increase awareness of their brand on the

international stage.

Tourism! The Namibian Tourism Agency makes the claim that the country is ...perfect fornature lovers, adventure or solace seekers, and for people looking to be inspired longafter their departure. The five features of the country that are highlighted are thewildlife, the culture, the geography, the history, and the climate. The notablecharacteristics of these features are the Namib desert spanning the coast of the countryand the exceptional non-commercialization of the wildlife in the northern part of thecountry. The natural beauty of the country is also highlighted in the tourism slogan:Endless horizons.

! Namibia also promotes the fact that environmental protection is written into thatcountys constitution, the only nation to do so. Community Based Tourism has been theresult of this commitment, which are said to bring social and monetary benefits to thelocal communities that provide these services causing the experience of tourists to beauthentically Namibian.! Adventure/Extreme sport tourism is certainly a spot of comparative advantage forthe country as it has a diversity of biospheres with which to host activities such as duneand sandboarding, skydiving, whale watching, and serious off-roading. These offeringscombined with the vastness that is much of Namibia where there are very few people(the second smallest population density in the world) thus allows the country to appealto both the soulful sojourner and the thrill seeking escapist.

! The challenge for Namibia is to balance the undiscovered country aspect whilealso marketing it to a wider audience. The lack of familiarity with the country and how todifferentiate it from the more popular African safari destinations is the largest obstacle toits success.

Alex Laverty

15 Feb 2012

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Exports! Namibian exports, like much of Southern Africa, is dominated by the extractionindustry, which produces 25% of the countrys income. It was ranked as the 8th largestproducers of diamonds in terms of real value in the world, and is the sixth rankedproducer of uranium, now supplying nearly 10% of world demand. While mining was

seen to be on the decline, the recent increases in world commodity prices has seenrenewed interest in Namibian minerals such as copper, gold, and natural gas.! The fastest growing export sector in Namibia is fishing. This is the result ofconservation methods undertaken by the government since independence when fishstocks had fallen to dangerously low levels. Sardines, anchovy, hake, and horsemackerel are the main species found in abundance in the cold South Atlantic waters.It may be difficult to brand Namibian mining exports, but the export of hake to WesternEuropean countries such as France and Spain may allow Namibia to put a nationbranding stamp on these exports to increase visibility. However, relating a foodstuff to acountry that has its primary advantage in tourism may have little relevance.

People! The historical roots of human habitation in Namibia allows it to promote itself as acountry with a deep lineage of humanity. These roots include the rock paintings innorthwestern Namibia and the Bushman/San population that lives in the Kalaharidesert, where they have lived for latter part of 30,000 years. The heritage of the countryincludes Boers escaping the Anglo-Boer war, German soldiers who gave Namibia auniquely German flair in architecture and cuisine, plus the South Africans thatadministered the country after South Africa took over the League of Nations mandateand then refused to release the territory. Like South Africa, Namibia has 11 ethnicgroups, the majority group, Ovambo, located in the north. While diversity of culture andthe unique link to German heritage could be a benefit to branding the country, the fact

that only %1 of the population has English as their native language may cause difficultyfor scaling up the tourism industry if Namibia was to see an increase in North American/Western European visitors. However, there is a significant Chinese population, one thatcould possibly be employed to support tourism from the East.

Culture/Heritage! Namibia has one UNESCO World Heritage Site, the rock paintings atTwyfelfontien that date between 6000 and 2000 years old and is known as one of thelargest concentrations found on flat, upright slabs of rock. As discussed before theunique location of German architecture on the east coast of Southern Africa, combinedwith the fact that you can order a jagerschnitzel on the African continent sticks out as a

feature that no other African destination can replicate. Namibia is certainly attempting tochannel some of South Africas rainbow nation quality when describing the diversitycaused by the inclusion of multiple black African ethnic groups and white and coloredAfrikaners.! The relative youth of the country hinders this identity formation as it was not ascritical to state survival as in South Africa, and with a population of 2.1 it is difficult toscale culture quickly. Thus relying on the connection to ancient and colonial Africa maybe its best course.

Alex Laverty

15 Feb 2012

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Governance! The politics of Namibian history are undoubtedly a benefit to the nations brand.The governance of the country is decidedly un-African despite the presence of de factoone-party state. In 2011, Namibia was ranked 6th on the Mo Ibrahim Index of African

governance, just below South Africa, and one ahead of Ghana. This can be a majoradvantage to Namibia, especially as there is not a perception of pervasive of crime asthere is in South Africa, thus perhaps an advantage over the continents hegemon. Therelative unknown of Namibia perhaps acts a boon, because no reputation in Africaalmost equates to a positive reputation. This also gives a clean slate from which to buildtheir national brand. There is no need to explain or cover up coups or massive voterigging. The weakness of governance towards the brand is the monopoly that theliberation movement turned political party has over the electorate. The party, SWAPO,dominates in a way that makes the elections in South Africa seem competitive, gaining75% of the vote at the last national election. While the government has performed in afocused manner in terms of development, there must be a worry that political stagnation

could occur due to the lack of political competition.

Investment/Immigration! With a stable democratic government, a developed infrastructure, efficienttransport system, and a stable exchange rate due to the linking of the Namibia Dollarwith the South African Rand, Namibia is an extremely attractive investment location onthe African continent. The port of Walvis Bay is the only port on the African Atlantic coastthat is linked by a paved highway route to the Indian Ocean. The fact that Walvis Bay isa strategic deep-water port that is connected to Angola, Zambia, Botswana, southernDR Congo, Malawi, and Zimbabwe, may give the country a chance to increase itsvisibility on the continent.

! Internationally, it will be difficult for Namibia to attract non-resource extractioninvestment because of the poor education system. The recent financial crisis hasresulted in the worsening of a trend that saw official employment decrease since thelate 1990s. With nearly 20% of the formal economy in the tourism sector, the need toattract companies that will invest in tourism might have the biggest near term impact onthe nations workers because of the salaries paid to employees. However, the taxationthe country can derive from export extraction will help fuel the reform of the educationsystem. Namibia will need to decide what kind of 21st century economic sector theireducation system should be aligned towards.

!! In summary, Namibia has great potential to be a significant brand not only on theAfrican continent, but on the world as a whole because of its stable political system, aone of a kind colonial heritage, and its unexploited natural beauty. These features giveNamibia the ability to market itself as a distinctive get away location that can cater to theextreme sport adventurer or those wishing to connect to the soul of Africa. The majorbrand challenge for Namibia to overcome is properly educating a certain type ofinternational traveler about the nations offerings while at the same time keeping theexclusivity of being one of the best kept secrets on the African continent.

Alex Laverty

15 Feb 2012