Namibia Environment - 2021

Environment - current issues

depletion and degradation of water and aquatic resources; desertification; land degradation; loss of biodiversity and biotic resources; wildlife poaching

Environment - international agreements

party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

particulate matter emissions: 22.59 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 4.23 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 10.4 megatons (2020 est.)

Total water withdrawal

municipal: 73 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

industrial: 14 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural: 201 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

Total renewable water resources

39.91 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

Climate

desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic

Land use

agricultural land: 47.2% (2018 est.)

arable land: 1% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 46.2% (2018 est.)

forest: 8.8% (2018 est.)

other: 44% (2018 est.)

Revenue from forest resources

forest revenues: 0.47% of GDP (2018 est.)

Revenue from coal

coal revenues: 0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 53% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 3.64% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: high (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: malaria

water contact diseases: schistosomiasis

Food insecurity

severe localized food insecurity: due to reduced incomes - an above-average harvest in 2021 is expected to lead to an improvement in food security compared to the previous year, however, the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily income and job losses, are expected to continue to constrain households’ access to food (2021)

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually: 256,729 tons (1993 est.)

municipal solid waste recycled annually: 11,553 tons (2005 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 4.5% (2005 est.)