Namibia: Understanding the Growing Digital Market with Jurgen Isaacs

Namibia is a very interesting country in many respects. Apart from being incredibly beautiful, the country has a very large territory, a small population, and a relatively high Internet penetration rate. As the country is going through a digitisation phase, it has become a very interesting case to look into to understand how shared hosting markets work and develop.

Jurgen Isaacs, the managing director of Technology Warehouse, the leading hosting company in Namibia, sat with us to talk about the shared hosting market in Namibia, as well as how the country goes online.

Namibia and Shared Hosting

Namibia in Numbers

Despite its large territory, Namibia has a population of only 2.5 million people, making it one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. The internet penetration rate is around 50-60%. The interesting thing about Namibia is that unlike other countries of Africa, where 90+% of companies host their websites in the US or Europe, local people prefer to host their websites in the country.

Currently, there are two companies in Namibia providing hosting services. Technology Warehouse is one of them, and it’s been in the business for the past two years. The company wants to change the idea of hosting in the African continent by providing hosting packages in Namibia. 'Before, the majority of people hosted their websites somewhere else. But during the pandemic, and even before that, we thought that if we were able to provide that service in Namibia, people wouldn’t use European or American service,' tells Jurgen. 'What we realised during the pandemic was that to have your company out there without someone having to physically come to your shop is important, and is becoming more so.'

Digitisation of Namibia

The usage of the Internet in Namibia, unlike some other countries in Africa, is a mix of both mobile and desktop. The government has a program to improve Internet coverage, and Technology Warehouse and other companies are working towards ensuring 99% coverage in the country. As this plan progresses, more and more people get access to the Internet and understand its importance. Currently, in the country, there are around 3,500 registered local .na domains. Another local domain is .co.na. The .na domain isn’t owned by the country but is private.

Money Matters

Namibia has one of the least expensive costs in South Africa for hosting, with the price standing at $3-5/month. The domains are a bit more expensive, especially the local domains: .na domain costs ~$100, while the co.na domain stands at ~$50. It’s one of the reasons for the yet low number of registered .na domains.

When it comes to payments, there is the problem of limited payment gateways: currently, there are only 3 registered payment gateways, that’s why the commissions are high. PayPal doesn’t work in Namibia, so bank transfers are the primary payment method for now. But this has been changing, and currently, real-time electronic fund transfers are starting to work as an alternative.

Price vs Quality

Interestingly, according to Jurgen, people in Namibia initially go for the pricing: they are willing to go with the cheapest available option. 'Then, when they realise how important a well-functioning website is for their business, they reconsider their packages.' In Namibia, currently, it's common to do business on social platforms, which are very popular in the country. 'Providing an affordable package consisting of the domain, hosting, and website builder can make people consider switching from social platforms, very popular in the country, to websites. But if they need to buy an expensive domain, then hosting, they prefer to stay on social media.'

Privacy Concerns

In the country, people use Instagram or Facebook a lot. However, what Jurgen says is that people need to understand that with social media, you are not in control. “You can easily be blocked. On socials, you are posting content for somebody else. It doesn’t belong to you.” There is a need to educate people about websites and other digital platforms so that they can make the best decisions for their brands.

In Namibia, there are currently no laws regarding data privacy and security. The government is currently working on a law that, among other things, will help keep the Namibian data in Namibia, and it may come to effect in a few years.

Language and Support

Namibia’s official level is English. That’s why most of the support and communication efforts are taking place in English. The company currently provides support only during office hours, but it’s making a transition to 24/7 to ensure accessibility for its clients.

Website Builders in Namibia

Warehouse Technologies, as part of their package, provide the Site.pro website builder to their customers. Because the Internet is just becoming widespread in the country, in the words of Jurgen, people still need to learn more about creating, managing, and running websites. 'We’ve noticed a lot of interaction from the customers. Currently, we have different educational programs on why websites are important, and how they can make them. From the feedback we’ve received so far, it’s going very well.'

Notwithstanding the widespread use of smartphones in the country, when making websites, people prefer to use desktop computers or laptops.

Tips and Know-How

According to Jurgen, when it comes to business, not only to shared hosting, the biggest mistake companies make is thinking they know their customer when they don’t. “You create a product, you are sure that’s what they need that they will buy it. Afterwards, you realise that this is not what the customer wants.” For this not to happen, it’s significant to concentrate on studying your audience and constantly improving your product. Promoting the product is important, but improving it is more so.

Wrapping Up

Although Namibia still has a long way to go to become a fully digitised country, the start is given. Joined efforts of the government and the industry to ensure accessible Internet is already giving fruits as more businesses and people come online.