On Friday, Namibia made history as it swore in Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah as the country’s first female president. Nandi-Ndaitwah, 72, won the presidential election, continuing the ruling SWAPO party’s 35-year hold on power. She is one of the few women to assume leadership of an African nation, a landmark achievement in the Southern African desert nation.
The ceremony was attended by several African heads of state, including those from Angola, South Africa, and Tanzania. Nandi-Ndaitwah, previously the vice president, is a longstanding member of the South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO), which led Namibia to independence from apartheid South Africa in 1990.
At the event, outgoing president Nangolo Mbumba, 83, handed over the presidency in a ceremony moved from the Independence Stadium to State House due to rare heavy rains. Applause and cheers greeted Nandi-Ndaitwah as she took the oath of office. Before her speech, she recognized previous women African leaders in attendance, including Liberia’s former president and Nobel Peace laureate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, and Tanzania’s president Samia Suluhu Hassan, the only other woman leading an African nation.
In her address, Nandi-Ndaitwah emphasized that her election was based on merit, not gender. “As women, we should not ask to be elected because we are women, but because we are capable members of our society,” she said.
A SWAPO member since the age of 14, Nandi-Ndaitwah became the first woman to lead the movement in 2024. She entered the National Assembly in 1990 and has held several key positions, including deputy prime minister and minister of various sectors. In November’s chaotic elections, which faced delays due to logistical failures, she secured 58% of the vote. The opposition, led by the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), garnered 25.5%, highlighting continued loyalty to SWAPO despite challenges faced by other liberation movements in southern Africa.
Unemployment among the youth was a central issue in the elections, with 44% of Namibians aged 18 to 34 without jobs in 2023. In her first presidential address, Nandi-Ndaitwah pledged to focus on investment in infrastructure, economic growth, and improving the quality of life for Namibians. “We will work to promote economic productivity, create opportunities, and address the economic divide,” she said.
With Namibia being a major producer of uranium and diamonds, Nandi-Ndaitwah also highlighted the need to address rural-to-urban migration and improvements in agriculture. She committed to implementing universal health coverage and acknowledged the global challenges, including climate change. She noted that the recent heavy rains were a reflection of these environmental changes.
Additionally, Nandi-Ndaitwah expressed support for Palestinian and Western Sahara self-determination and called for the lifting of sanctions on Cuba, Venezuela, and Zimbabwe. As a socially conservative leader, she has taken a strong stance on abortion and same-sex marriage, both of which are prohibited in Namibia.
Businesswoman Monica Geingos, wife of the late president Hage Geingob, expressed her excitement at the historic moment, saying, “Super excited at the inauguration of a female president.”
This marks a new chapter for Namibia, with the country now led by its first female president.
