The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) was officially launched in April 2001 as a not-for-profit organisation with a mission to deliver independent, analytical, critical yet constructive research into social, political and economic issues that affect development in Namibia. It has been established in the belief that development is best promoted through free and critical debate informed by quality research.

The IPPR is a grant funded policy research institute, autonomous of government, political parties, business, trade unions and other interest groups. A board of seven independently-minded trustees with wide ranging experiences and expertise from different areas of society including government, the private sector, academia, the media, and the NGO sector governs the IPPR. They are from left to right in the photo:

Staff and Administration

Daniel Motinga manages the work of the Institute since July 2005. The institute was previously jointly managed by Messrs Robin Sherbourne and Christiaan Keulder. The IPPR was founded with the conviction that Namibian decision-makers and the Namibian public at large stood to benefit greatly from rigorous and accessible research on political, social and economic issues. Although the importance of this kind of research is widely recognised, it cannot generally be financed from commercial sources of money without losing its public focus or compromising its integrity. The IPPR therefore relies mostly on non-commercial sources of funds including the generous support of the Ford Foundation, the Netherlands Embassy and the Finnish Embassy. These three organisations have agreed to pool their support to the IPPR on the basis of an agreed two-year programme of work rather than sponsor individual projects or products. The IPPR has also received money for particular projects from the Namibian Stock Exchange, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, FES Namibia, the Government of Namibia and the Minerals Development Fund. The British High Commission supports the printing and dissemination of publications. The IPPR welcomes sponsorship from commercial sources too provided it is based on the understanding that the independence of the IPPR is not compromised. Irwin Jacobs Greene stockbrokers sponsor the IJG Business Climate Monitor. Virtually all the research conducted by the IPPR is freely available to everyone, either through our e-mail subscription service, our printed publications, or via this website.