Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is formally inaugurated as Namibia’s first female president this Friday, March 21. She now becomes the sixth African woman to occupy the highest office, following in the footsteps of Samia Suluhu, Joyce Banda in Malawi, and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in Liberia.
The first female candidate for SWAPO presidency in 2024 is Ndemupelila Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, who was born on October 29, 1952.
Before rising to the highest leadership position, President Nandi-Ndaitwah was Deputy Prime Minister of Namibia from 2015 to 2024, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation from December 2012 to 2015, and Minister of Environment and Tourism from March 2010 to December 2012. She is a long-standing member of the National Assembly.
But long before facing the ballot box, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, 72, had to impose herself within her own party, SWAPO, at a particularly hotly contested congress. She faced fierce competition, with several party figures challenging her legitimacy.
The question of gender quotas in Africa
On the continent, quotas have been set up by Africa UN Women to ensure the presence of women in circles of power. However, these measures are far from a foregone conclusion, and can have perverse effects.
Political violence and harassment continue to be directed at women involved in politics.
A recent United Nations assessment estimates that, at the current rate of progress, parity in the highest level of political decision-making will not be achieved for another 130 years. Experts agree that far-reaching structural reforms are needed. It’s not enough to introduce quotas; we also need to change mentalities and practices within political parties and the society as a whole.
