IMF sees Namibia's economic growth slowing to 2.5 percent in 2016

Visitors are silhouetted against the logo of the International Monetary Fund at the main venue for the IMF and World Bank annual meeting in Tokyo, file. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

WINDHOEK (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday it expected Namibia's economic growth to slow to 2.5 percent this year after expanding by 5.3 percent in 2015, as a decline in construction activity weighs. The southern African nation's growth is expected to pick up to above 5 percent in 2017 as mines rump up production, the IMF said in a statement after a team led a mission to Namibia. (Writing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by James Macharia)