Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah sworn in as Namibia’s first female president

Monday, March 24, 2025 

Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, 72, former vice president of Namibia, was sworn in as Namibia’s first female president on Friday. She won the presidential election in November 2024 as the candidate of the ruling South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO).

SWAPO secured 53% of the parliamentary vote in the election, winning 51 out of 91 seats. The opposition party, Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), secured 20 seats.

Nandi-Ndaitwah became the second woman to hold a presidential position in Africa. Dignitaries from across the continent were present at her inauguration, among them seven sitting African presidents and nine former heads of state.

According to a BBC article, Namibia’s unemployment rate rose to 36.9% in 2023. She emphasized the need for economic diversification to generate employment, noting it would “create jobs to take care of the unemployed, of which the majority are the youth.”

In her inaugural address, she stated, “We are going to increase investments in the agriculture sector to boost output and meet domestic food requirements.”

A veteran politician and long-time SWAPO member, Nandi-Ndaitwah joined the party at the age of 14 during Namibia’s liberation movement and went into exile in 1973 to join the movement.

SWAPO member Henning Melber voiced concern that the party had yet to fill the vice-presidency left vacant by Nandi-Ndaitwah during her presidential bid. MP Tobie Aupindi said the vacancy would remain until the party’s next regular congress in 2027.