Namibia Loses its President – President Hage Gottfried Geingob dies at 82

Namibia’s third president died on 4 February 2024 at a hospital in Windhoek at age 82.

Then-Vice President and current President of Namibia, His Excellency Nangolo Mbumba, announced that Geingob died on Sunday morning.

“By his side was his wife and his dear children,” said Mbumba said.

Geingob has been battling health issues in recent months. On 8 January 2024, he announced that he had been diagnosed with cancer. According to the Namibian Newspaper, Geingob then went for cancer treatment in the United States of America on 25 January. He returned from America on 30 January following two days of treatment.

In a statement released by the Presidency, then-Vice President Mbumba announced that the president was under medical care from his medical team. Mbumba mentioned that despite the team’s best efforts to help the president recover, it was with regret that President Geingob had passed away.

Geingob assumed office as president in 2015, marking the beginning of his second term. Previously, he served as Namibia’s inaugural prime minister from 1990 to 2002 under President Sam Nujoma’s administration. Following his resounding victory in the 2014 sixth national democratic elections, where he secured 87% of the vote, Geingob was inaugurated as the Republic of Namibia’s third president on March 21, 2015.

In 2019, during the seventh National Assembly and presidential elections, Geingob secured re-election for a second term. He also served as the third president of the ruling party, SWAPO, following his election at the sixth SWAPO Party Ordinary Congress in November 2017. In the seventh ordinary congress of the SWAPO Party in 2022, Geingob was re-elected as its president.

During his tenure from 2015 to 2024, Geingob navigated Namibia through challenging times, including an economic downturn triggered by the global commodity crisis of 2014, severe droughts from 2015 to 2019 – reported as the worst in Namibia’s history, and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2022.

Driven by his vision for Namibia’s development and prosperity, Geingob launched the Harambee Prosperity Plan I and II. These initiatives aimed to bolster Namibia’s governance structures, uplift vulnerable communities, advance economic and infrastructural development, and elevate Namibia’s standing in global affairs.

Geingob was a leading advocate for the continental recognition of green hydrogen as a catalyst for Africa’s green industrialization and a crucial tool in combating climate change. As head of state, he established the Welwitschia Sovereign Wealth Fund to ensure equitable distribution of the nation’s natural resources across generations.

On January 16, 2024, President Geingob publicly disclosed his diagnosis of cancer, and passed away on February 4, 2024

Geingob was survived by his wife Monica Geingos, eight children, three grandchildren, two siblings and numerous nieces and nephews.

Naango K