The history of Sanlam Namibia is a story of evolution. It is a chronicle of the dedication of generations of Sanlammers who were, and still are, fully committed to make this company the best it can be and as Namibian as it can be.

Sanlam has been operating in Namibia for decades, making it one of the most firmly embedded long-term insurance companies currently operating in the country. In 1989, Sanlam Namibia Ltd was integrated into Namibian society with various marketing and administrative activities of Sanlam South Africa transferred to Sanlam Namibia. "Sanlam Namibia takes deep pride in the fact that all aspects of the total insurance function are being performed locally by fully trained committed Namibians", says Chief Executive Officer, Tertius Stears proudly.

Over the years there has been a pertinent drive to Namibianise activities. In view of this the company is proud of its local risk underwriting, independent product IT platform, homegrown product portfolio, marketing activities, all supported by an in-house corporate actuary. Apart from these, Sanlam Namibia's Namibianisation drive doesn't end with Sanlam Namibia proper, as the company's Unit Trust company is also a totally Namibian, locally administered company. Furthermore there has been massive skills transfer in the field of asset management, and the Namibianisation of the back office for portfolio administration and investment accounting.

Apart from these operationally focused areas, Sanlam Namibia already in 2004 offered up to 35% equity participation to Namibians. As far as asset management is concerned, this equity participation to broad-based Black Empowerment Groups (already in 2004) was also up to 35%. In 2004 a partial consolidation of the Namibian life-insurance industry was heralded by the establishment of Consolidated Financial Services Holdings (Pty) Ltd (CFS), now known as Sanlam Namibia Holdings, with the following subsidiaries: Sanlam Namibia, Capricorn Life Namibia, now Namibia Life (Namlife), BW Financial Advisers and the Unit Trust companies of both Sanlam Namibia and Bank Windhoek. Via this transaction Namibianisation was taken even further, in that Nam-mic, the investment arm of the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW) became shareholders in the holdings company, Sanlam Namibia Holdings. Nam-mic now effectively owns 8,6% of Sanlam Namibia Holdings and through the shareholder agreement, Nam-mic has the opportunity to increase its effective stake in Sanlam Namibia Holdings.

Sanlam Namibia remains committed to its strategic vision to be the trusted and dynamic leader in wealth creation and financial solutions, whilst being a client-centric organization, growing shareholder value and providing financial peace of mind to its stakeholders. With all these initiatives, Sanlam Namibia can proudly say that it has kept up with public demands and is thinking ahead in its initiatives to effectively manage the changing environment.