Namibia’s Founder and First President, Sam Nujoma, Dies at 95

By Al Mayadeen English

9 Feb 2025 15:23

The first Namibian president after the country gained independence has passed away at 95.

Sam Nujoma, Namibia's founding president following its independence in 1990, has died at the age of 95, the country's leader announced.  

Namibian President Nangolo Mbumba shared the news on X early Saturday, stating that Nujoma passed away on Friday in a hospital in the capital, Windhoek.

During the past three weeks, the iconic politician had been fighting an illness, from which he “could not recover,” he wrote.

“It is therefore with utmost sorrow and sadness that I announce… to the Namibian people, our African brothers and sisters, and the world at large, about the passing of our revered freedom fighter and revolutionary leader, H.E. Dr. Sam Shafiishuna Nujoma,” Mbumba said.

The president announced a period of national mourning for Nujoma, who, he said, “lived a long and consequential life during which he exceptionally served the people of his beloved country.”

Who is Sam Nujoma? 

Sam Nujoma, born in 1929 to impoverished farmers of the Ovambo tribe, was the eldest of ten siblings.

From 1966 to 1989, while in exile, Nujoma led a guerrilla campaign against apartheid-era South Africa, which governed Namibia at the time. He played a pivotal role in negotiations with global powers, leading to UN Security Council Resolution 435, which outlined a framework for free and fair elections in Namibia.  

In 1989, following a US-brokered agreement that secured South Africa’s withdrawal from Namibia in exchange for the removal of 50,000 Cuban troops from neighboring Angola, Nujoma returned to his homeland.  

Namibia achieved independence in 1990, with Nujoma becoming its first president. He served three consecutive terms, leading the nation from 1990 to 2005.

One of his well-known quotes was, “A people united, striving to achieve a common good for all the members of the society, will always emerge victorious.”