Government freezes unadvertised public service positions

The government has placed a temporary freeze on the filling of all unadvertised public service positions until the end of March 2026. In a memo issued to ministries and agencies on Wednesday, Cabinet secretary Emilia Mkusa said the freeze forms part of broader fiscal control measures aimed at strengthening Namibia’s economy. “Only medical personnel and educators are exempted from the directive due to the critical nature of their services,” said Mkusa. She said positions that have already been cleared and advertised are also not affected, and accounting officers have been urged to expedite the filling of such posts. However, the filling of all positions that have been cleared but not yet advertised must be halted immediately. Ministries, government offices and agencies have been instructed not to submit new requests for filling positions during the freeze period. Mkusa said the decision is intended to promote fiscal discipline and manage the public wage bill more effectively during the upcoming medium-term expenditure cycle. The directive follows on a Cabinet meeting on 7 October, during which the country’s macro-fiscal developments and prospects for the 2025/26 financial year, along with the medium-term budget policy statement for the 2026/27 to 2028/29 Medium Term Expenditure Framework, were discussed.