Hifikepunye Pohamba
| Hifikepunye Pohamba | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 2nd President of Namibia | |
|
In office 21 March 2005 – 21 March 2015 |
|
| Prime Minister |
Nahas Angula (2005-2012) Hage Geingob (2012-2015) |
| Preceded by | Sam Nujoma |
| Succeeded by | Hage Geingob |
| President of SWAPO | |
|
In office 29 November 2007 – 19 April 2015 |
|
| Preceded by | Sam Nujoma |
| Succeeded by | Hage Geingob |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
18 August 1935 Okanghudi, Southwest Africa (now Namibia) |
| Political party | SWAPO |
| Spouse(s) | Penehupifo Pohamba |
| Children | Tulongeni Kaupu Ndapanda |
| Alma mater | Peoples' Friendship University of Russia |
| Religion | Anglicanism |
Hifikepunye Lucas Pohamba (born 18 August 1935) is a Namibian politician who served as the second President of Namibia from 21 March 2005 to 21 March 2015. He won the 2004 election overwhelmingly as the candidate of SWAPO, the ruling party, and he was re-elected in the 2009 election. Pohamba was the President of SWAPO from 2007 until his retirement in 2015. Pohamba is a recipient of the Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership.
Prior to his Presidency, Pohamba served in various ministerial positions, beginning at Namibia's independence in 1990: he was Minister of Home Affairs from 1990 to 1995, Minister of Fisheries from 1995 to 1997, Minister without Portfolio from 1997 to 2000, and Minister of Lands from 2001 to 2005. He was also Secretary-General of SWAPO from 1997 to 2002 and Vice-President of SWAPO from 2002 to 2007.
As a child, he completed his primary education in the Anglican Holy Cross Mission school in Onamunhama. At the age of 25, Pohamba was a founding member of SWAPO in 1960. He was arrested for his political activity but moved to Southern Rhodesia, when he was deported soon afterwards. He then spent four months in prison in South West Africa before spending two years in Ovamboland under house arrest. In 1964, he went to Lusaka to set up SWAPO's Zambian office, and on his return, met the man who was later to become President, Sam Nujoma. Until the achievement of Namibian independence, Pohamba represented SWAPO across Africa, although he studied politics in the Soviet Union for a time in the early 1980s. He headed SWAPO's 1989 election campaign and was a SWAPO member of the Constituent Assembly, which was in place from November 1989 to March 1990, before becoming a member of the National Assembly at independence in March 1990. He was Minister of Home Affairs from March 1990 to 1995, Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources from 1995 to 1997, and Minister without Portfolio from 1997 to March 2000. He was elected as Secretary-General of SWAPO in 1997 and as its Vice-President in 2002. On 26 January 2001, he was appointed Minister of Lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation, in which position he remained until becoming President in 2005.
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