Namibia

Lore & Background

Namibia is the driest country in sub-Saharan Africa, and has been inhabited since prehistoric times by the Khoi, San, Damara and Nama people. Around the 14th century, immigrating Bantu peoples arrived as part of the Bantu expansion. From 1600, the Owambo formed kingdoms, such as Ondonga and Oukwanyama. In 1884, the German Empire established rule over most of the territory, forming a colony known as German South West Africa. Between 1904–08, German troops waged a punitive campaign against the Herero and Nama which escalated into the first genocide of the 20th century. German rule ended during the First World War with a 1915 defeat by South African forces. In 2021, German and Namibian diplomats created a 'reconciliation agreement' acknowledging atrocities from the German colonial period. In 1920, the League of Nations mandated administration of the colony to South Africa. The National Party, elected to power in 1948 in South Africa, applied apartheid to what was then known as South West Africa. Uprisings and demands for political representation resulted in the United Nations assuming direct responsibility over the territory in 1967, but South Africa maintained de facto rule until 1990. That year the UN recognised the South West Africa People's Organisation, SWAPO, as the official representative of the Namibian people. Namibia gained independence from South Africa in March 1990, following the South African Border War. However, Walvis Bay and the Penguin Islands remained under South African control until 1994.

In Their Own Story

The sun hangs low over the Namib, painting the dunes of Sossusvlei in hues of burnt orange and deep crimson. A lone Oryx stands silhouetted against the shifting sands, its breath visible in the crisp morning air as the fog rolls in from the Atlantic, a rare gift that sustains life in this ancient desert. In the distance, the skeletal remains of a shipwreck rust on the Skeleton Coast, a silent monument to the treacherous waters that have claimed many vessels over centuries. Here, time moves at the pace of the wind, and the silence is so profound it feels like a physical weight, reminding all who enter that this land belongs to nature first.

Reader's Guide

Namibia is a parliamentary democracy. Agriculture, tourism and the mining industry – including mining for diamonds, uranium, gold, silver and base metals – form the basis of its economy, while the manufacturing sector is comparatively small. Despite significant GDP growth since its independence, poverty and inequality remain significant. 41% of the population is affected by multidimensional poverty, and more than 400,000 people live in informal housing. Income disparity is one of the world's highest with a Gini coefficient of 59 in 2015. With a population of 3.1 million people, Namibia is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Since the end of the Cold War, it has attracted notable immigration from Germany, Angola, and Zimbabwe. Namibia is a member state of the United Nations, the Southern African Development Community, the African Union and the Commonwealth of Nations.

Did You Know?

• The name of the country is derived from the Namib desert, the oldest desert in the world. The word Namib itself is of Khoi origin and means 'vast place'.
• The first Europeans to disembark and explore the region were the Portuguese navigators Diogo Cão in 1485 and Bartolomeu Dias in 1487–1488, but the Portuguese did not try to claim the area.
• From 1904 to 1908, the Herero and the Nama took up arms against ruthless German settlers, leading to what has been called the 'first genocide of the 20th century'.