This paper discusses the role of the postal network in expanding access to financial services in Namibia. It reviews the public postal operator within the postal sector and within the broader context of the communications sector. The roles of the postal network and the Namibia Post Bank are also reviewed from the perspective of the financial sector development, with particular focus on payments systems development and micro finance.
This paper was prepared with desk research in 2004. Field visits were not scheduled, but data was drawn from previous work with NamPost and its post office savings bank. Data on the payments system was available, including a Committee on Payments and Settlement Systems report from the Bank for International Settlements, a recent study on access to financial services conducted by FinMark, and several other sources. Unfortunately, access to recent annual reports of NamPost or the Namibia Post Office Savings Bank was not forthcoming.
While this country case on Namibia can stand alone, it is an integral part of this large study of the potential of postal networks to coordinate with financial service providers in 7 countries (Egypt, Kazakhstan, Namibia, Romania, Sri Lanka, Uganda, and Vietnam) and 5 regions (Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Middle East and Northern Africa).
