Lydia Pitiri KIGALI – The Dr Hage Geingob Fellows was launched through the Inter-Generational Leadership Accelerator (ILA) programme during the inauguration of the Leadership Lab Yetu in Kigali, Rwanda, on Saturday. …
… Speaking at the Leadership Lab Yetu inauguration in Kigali, Rwanda, on Saturday, Geingos, who is also the chairperson of the organisation, called for a fundamental shift in how the continent nurtures its future decision-makers. …
Endurance rider Drikus Coetzee says he is ready to test himself against some of the world’s best ultra-distance cyclists at the upcoming Race Around Rwanda (RaR). …
… Overall, it was a very good start to the series following last week’s success.” He added that this was excellent preparation for an international 1 000km ultra-endurance race in Rwanda, in which he will participate in February. …
… In Rwanda, Uganda and the DRC, organisations such as the Gorilla Doctors have prevented dozens of deaths by helping animals affected by human behaviour, such as releasing gorillas accidentally caught in poachers’ traps. …
… The American streamer, Darren Watkins Jr (20), turned spontaneous livestreams across Ghana, Nigeria, the Ivory Coast, South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Rwanda, Ethiopia and recently Egypt and Algeria into a global cultural and tourism promotion – without scripts, ads or ma …
… Pre-teen boys in Rwanda and Ethiopia cried with joy and excitement as they hugged their online hero in real life – known by his gamer tag IShowSpeed or simply Speed, who now has more than 48 million YouTube subscribers. …
… Rwanda enforces robust data protection and privacy legislation that criminalises the recording and dissemination of personal images without consent where dignity is compromised. …
… Rwanda has also shown progress by centering entrepreneurship, ICT, and public‑private partnerships in its employment strategies — lowering youth unemployment from over 22 % to roughly 17 % in recent years. …
More than 84 000 people have fled to Burundi from the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) amid a Rwanda-backed rebel offensive near the countries’ shared border, according to the latest United Nations figures. …
Namibia's removal from the Financial Action Task Force greylist in June 2026 signals restored confidence in the financial ecosystem and reduces barriers faced by entrepreneurs, including increased scrutiny, higher transaction costs, and delays in cross-border payments that affected international business dealings.
Why it matters
Namibia's FATF greylist exit removes barriers to business competitiveness and restores international financial confidence.
Namibia's removal from the Financial Action Task Force greylist in June 2026 signals restored confidence in the financial ecosystem and reduces barriers faced by entrepreneurs, including increased scrutiny, higher transaction costs, and delays in cross-border payments that affected international business dealings.
An editorial argues that while Namibia needs to build domestic manufacturing capacity rather than rely on imports, the thousands of young people earning livelihoods through "Order With Me" import businesses should not be dismissed. The piece contends these entrepreneurs demonstrate innovation and market responsiveness, and government should support their transition toward higher-value activities rather than treating them as illegitimate.
The government has launched a pilot electric vehicle charging station at the ministry of works and transport headquarters in Windhoek, signaling its recognition that global transport is shifting towards cleaner mobility and positioning Namibia to follow the lead of regional peers.
Namibia has urged its citizens in South Africa to remain vigilant and seek consular assistance amid reports of anti-migrant unrest and xenophobic attacks, though the Ministry of International Relations and Trade has not received reports of Namibian nationals being affected.
The US State Department is reportedly cutting visa-issuing consulates and embassies on the African continent, including Namibia's, according to the Associated Press. The closest remaining visa-processing hubs would be South Africa's consulates in Cape Town and Johannesburg, or Angola's Luanda consulate.
Two of Namibia's neighbours, Angola and Zambia, are among ten African countries at risk of Ebola exposure as an outbreak spreads in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has recorded about 750 suspected cases and 177 deaths. The May 2026 outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no vaccine and mortality rates can reach up to 50 per cent.
Former Namibian health minister Dr Richard Kamwi has been appointed president of the Society for AIDS in Africa, an organisation focused on strengthening the continent's response to HIV, tuberculosis, hepatitis, emerging infectious diseases and broader public health issues. The appointment followed a leadership handover ceremony and executive board transition meeting held in Accra, Ghana on 14–15 May.
Bank of Namibia governor Ebson Uanguta visited Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda to strengthen cooperation and learn from other African central banks, focusing on financial systems, digital transformation, banking supervision, oil sector management and economic policy. The Bank of Namibia signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Rwanda's central bank on economic research, financial inclusion, digital transformation, sustainable finance, innovation and staff training.
The Ministry of Home Affairs says Angolan nationals, including children on Namibian streets, do not qualify for refugee status under Namibian law and international conventions, as they left Angola seeking socio-economic opportunities rather than fleeing persecution.
A UN-backed report shows that more than 70% of daily travel among low-income Namibians depends on walking and cycling, yet urban infrastructure continues to be designed for car owners, creating what the article characterizes as a policy failure with deadly consequences for pedestrians, cyclists, and informal workers.
A study of Namibia's Swapo party quota policy, which alternated men and women on parliamentary candidate lists from 2013, found that women's representation in the National Assembly rose from 21% to 41% in the 2014 election. Women in Swapo strongholds subsequently became significantly more supportive of women's political leadership, while men showed no backlash, suggesting exposure to women leaders can reshape attitudes about gender and political capacity.
Mobile Telecommunications Limited increased spending on its second annual Branding and Marketing Indaba to N$4.6 million, up from N$4.4–4.5 million the previous year, primarily due to the introduction of Excellence Awards with N$20,000 prizes per category and an increase in delegates from 300 to 400.
The Democratic Republic of Congo has agreed to accept migrants deported from the United States who are not Congolese nationals, effective this month, with the US providing logistical and technical support. The DRC joins other African countries including Eswatini, Ghana and South Sudan in receiving third-country deportees as part of the Trump administration's hardline immigration policy.
Communal farmers associations in Namibia remain underutilised despite their potential to drive employment, food security, and rural development. The article argues that independent auditing, trained administration, market partnerships, revenue diversification, and leveraging the resettlement programme are essential to transform these organisations from subsistence-level operations into engines of rural prosperity.
Reporters Without Borders reports that journalists in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have experienced increasing violence and pressure since M23's capture of Goma in January 2025, including detention, forced ideological training, and censorship of local media. The government and M23 both target journalists, and around 90 reporters fled the conflict zones between 2023 and early 2025.
The second annual MTC Branding and Marketing Indaba will bring African marketing and communications professionals to Windhoek in April under the theme "Marketing From the Heart," featuring keynote speakers, panel discussions and networking focused on authentic storytelling, nation branding, and digital communication strategies.
Namibia's national men's football team has arrived in Astana, Kazakhstan, for the 2026 FIFA Series. The squad will face Kazakhstan tomorrow and Comoros on Saturday at the Astana Arena, bolstered by the arrival of three foreign-based players.
Rwanda is seeking over £100 million from Britain at an international arbitration court in The Hague, claiming unpaid amounts and costs from a 2022 migrant deportation agreement that Britain abandoned in 2024, calling it a waste of taxpayers' money. Britain disputes Rwanda's claims, arguing they are motivated by retaliation for London's suspension of aid over Rwanda's alleged support for M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
PDM Member of Parliament Diederik Vries has criticised the 2026/2027 national budget for failing to address service delivery, saying high operational costs and debt servicing hinder economic development and capital project funding. Vries pointed to persistent youth unemployment, housing shortages, weak growth, and insufficient agricultural funding, arguing that despite allocating 61.7% to the social sector, the system is not delivering productivity and inclusive growth.
Namibian musician Monica Pineas, known as TopCheri, has been named the best star artist for southern Africa (2025/2026) at the Shining Stars Africa Awards ceremony in Kigali. The award recognises her work including her final album 'I Am Monika', and adds to her growing list of achievements as she continues to represent Namibia on continental platforms.
Namibian singer TopCheri won 'Best Star Artist Southern Africa of the Year' at the Shining Star Africa Awards in Kigali, Rwanda, and performed tracks from her latest album 'I am Monika'. She expressed gratitude for the recognition and clarified that while stepping back from full-length albums, she will continue releasing singles and performing.
Nedbank Group's digital volumes and values have increased significantly as clients embrace digital channels, with 70% of Nedbank Africa Regions' active clients now digitally active, meeting the 2025 target. The group's headline earnings grew 2% to R17.2 billion in 2025, while the bank continues strategic expansion including a proposed acquisition of 66% stake in NCBA Group in East Africa.
The Namibia Tourism Board and South African Airways partnered to promote intra-African travel and position Namibia as a regional destination. The partnership brought together travel operators from 15 African countries for networking and package development, with focus on growing Namibia's meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions sector.
The Kavimvira border post on Lake Tanganyika between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi reopened after more than two months of closure during a Rwanda-backed M23 armed group offensive in eastern DRC. The reopening came after the M23 withdrew from the city of Uvira in January, allowing the DR Congo army to regain control of the strategically important frontier crossing.
A parliamentary delegation led by James Uerikua visited Rwanda to exchange best practices on international relations, defence and security. The MPs identified Rwanda's anti-corruption measures, technology-driven governance, security sector professionalism and public accountability mechanisms as models Namibia could realistically adopt to strengthen oversight and service delivery.
During the 39th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah held bilateral meetings with international partners to advance Namibia's priorities in trade and investment, HIV response and health sovereignty, climate finance and resilience, and water governance. The engagements included meetings with representatives from the United States, Arab development bank, UNAIDS, the Green Climate Fund, Ethiopia, Rwanda, and the UN.
Namibia recorded its worst corruption perceptions index score on record in 2025 at 46/100, dropping three points and falling six places globally to 65th. An Afrobarometer survey conducted in 2024 found that over half of Namibians believe corruption has increased significantly, and confidence in government anti-corruption efforts is at its lowest level since 1999.
A Valentine's Day trend of gifting money folded into bouquet designs has spread across Kenya and other African countries, prompting central banks including Namibia's to warn against damaging banknotes, as glued or defaced currency must be withdrawn from circulation at taxpayer cost.
Namibian health officials say the human papillomavirus vaccine, introduced in August 2025 and now part of routine immunisation, is safe and effective at preventing cervical cancer, dismissing misinformation circulating among parents about claims that it causes sterility or targets Africans. Officials note that cervical cancer is the second leading cause of death among women in Namibia and can be prevented through vaccination and screening.
Qatar announced that the UN will deploy a mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo's east to help enforce a ceasefire between the Kinshasa government and the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group. The move follows a meeting in Doha where both sides agreed to establish a monitoring mechanism, though previous ceasefire agreements signed in July and December have failed to end the conflict.