Approved building plans within the City of Windhoek recorded a sharp decline in August, with approvals dropping month-on-month across property additions, residential units, and commercial and industrial sectors.
According to data released by IJG Research, the municipality approved a total of 135 building plans valued at N$161.9 million during the month, representing a 41% month-on-month and 16.7% year-on-year contraction in number, and a 20.3% month-on-month and 24.1% year-on-year contraction in value.
Of this total, 94 property additions valued at N$40.7 million were approved. This represents a 47.2% month-on-month decline in number and 44.6% month-on-month contraction in value. On a year-on-year basis, the number of approvals declined by 16.8%, while their value decreased by 19.9%.
Residential building plan approvals declined to 35 units, with the total value of approvals also decreasing by 7.4% month-on-month to N$92.2 million. On a year-on-year basis, both the number and value of residential approvals were down, with the number of residential approvals declining by 16.7% and the value of approvals contracting by 14.8%.
Six commercial and industrial building plans were approved, one fewer than the seven recorded the previous month, while the combined value of approvals declined by a modest 3.7% month-on-month to N$29.1 million. On a year-on-year basis, the number of approvals also declined by one unit, while the value of approvals was 46.9% lower than in August last year.
Of the total approvals, only 17 buildings were completed during the reporting month. The value of completed buildings declined from N$33.6 million to N$21.3 million, representing a 36.6% month-on-month and 26.9% year-on-year contraction.
Completions consisted of 10 property additions and seven residential units. No commercial or industrial buildings were completed during the six months to August.
IJG noted that while commercial or industrial building projects generally have long construction lead times, the current stretch represents the longest consecutive period without a completion since 2021. Year-to-date, only one commercial or industrial project has been completed, valued at N$3 million, compared to three completions worth N$45.2 million during the same period last year.
