Namibia

Feeding Cities in Crisis: Gender, Informal Sector and COVID-19 in Namibia

The COVID-19 pandemic presented numerous challenges to public health, the economy, and society across Namibia. Urban centres such as Windhoek became the epicentre of infections, while low-income and informal settlement households faced disproportionate exposure to health risks, loss of income, and food insecurity. The Namibian government implemented public health measures, including lockdowns, mobility restrictions, and […]

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Towards a Gender-Responsive and Resilient Informal Food Sector in Urban Northern Namibia

The COVID-19 pandemic caused severe disruption to Namibia’s vibrant urban informal economy. This paper examines the impact of the pandemic on the informal food sector in northern Namibia, with a focus on the towns of Oshakati, Ondangwa, and Ongwediva. The data come from a survey of 250 informal food vendors (200 women and 50 men)

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Social Innovation and Gendered Resilience in the Informal Food Economy of Namibia

Informal food trading is a vital source of livelihood and food security in African cities, yet traders operate under precarious conditions requiring constant adaptation. This study examines how social innovations enable resilience among informal traders in Windhoek, Namibia, with attention to gendered pathways. Using a cross-sectional survey of 470 traders, three innovation constructs – adaptive

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Rural-Urban Food Transfers in Namibia. What has Changed in 30 Years? A Case Study of Northern Namibia

The project takes a political economy lens to examine the informal cross-border trade of staple food items from southern Angola into Namibia, examining the activities of small-scale food traders and vendors in three dominant informal food markets at Oshikango, Oshakati and Windhoek in Namibia. The study has three research objectives: (1) to explore the political

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Angolan Migrant Exploitation and Vulnerability to Food Insecurity in Transit

Namibia in recent years received an increasing number of migrants from Angola. The recent droughts in the Cunene and Huila provinces in Angola led to mass movements of Angolan migrants into Namibia. Driven out of their country of origin by unemployment, poverty, hunger and general insecurity, the experiences of these migrants when in transit is

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Changing Diets, Varying Food Consumption Patterns, and Food Security among Recent Zimbabwean Migrants in Windhoek, Namibia

In Zimbabwe, decades of economic and political challenges have generated significant out-migration to neighboring countries including Namibia, perceived by many Zimbabweans as being more politically and economically stable than their home country. While numerous studies have documented these movements, few have interrogated the food security of migrants in host countries, where they are likely to

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The Migration-Remittance Dividend: Building Food Security Across the Commonwealth

Migration and remittance processes have a significant impact on socioeconomic development and food security in Commonwealth countries. Although remittances are critical sources of income for migrant-sending households in countries of origin, their effects are shaped by economic arrangements, financial inclusion and policy contexts. Moreover, the linkages between migration, remittances and food security remain largely underexplored.

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Internal Migration, Climate Adaptation, and Food System Resilience in Namibia

As one of sub-Saharan Africa’s most arid countries, Namibia serves as a crucial example for studying the interactions between climate vulnerability, migration, and food systems. This study investigates how internal migration flows to Windhoek and northern towns (Oshakati, Ongwediva, Ondangwa) transform urban food networks while creating new patterns of risk and adaptation. Through household surveys,

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Remitting for Resilience (R2): Enhancing Food Security and Climate Adaptation Through Gender-Inclusive Migrant Remittances

The R2 grant funded by NFRF in Canada responds to international calls to enhance adaptive capacities and resilience-building strategies to address the risks of climate change to food security, rural and urban livelihoods, and human mobility in Africa. The objectives of the project include: coproducing and mobilizing knowledge about the role of migration and remittances

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