Sam Nujoma

Samuel Shafiishuna Daniel Nujoma (12 May 1929 – 8 February 2025) was a Namibian revolutionary, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served three terms as the first president of Namibia, from 1990 to 2005. Nujoma was a founding member and the first president of the South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO) in 1960.

Nujoma became involved in anti-colonial politics during the 1950s. In 1959, he co-founded and served as the first president of the Ovamboland People's Organization (OPO), a nationalist organization advocating for an independent Namibia. In December 1958, he was an organizer of the Old Location resistance and was arrested and deported to Ovamboland. In 1960, he escaped and went into exile in Tanzania, where he was welcomed by Julius Nyerere.

Nujoma played an important role as the leader of the national liberation movement in campaigning for Namibia's political independence from South African rule. The OPO was renamed SWAPO in 1960. Nujoma established the People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN) in 1962 and launched a guerrilla war against the apartheid government of South Africa in August 1966 at Omugulugwombashe after the United Nations withdrew the mandate for South Africa to govern the territory. Nujoma led SWAPO during the lengthy Namibian War of Independence, which lasted from 1966 to 1989.

Namibia achieved independence from South Africa in 1990 and held its first democratic elections the same year. SWAPO won a majority, and Nujoma was sworn in as the country's first president on 21 March 1990. He was re-elected for two more terms in 1994 and 1999. Nujoma retired as SWAPO party president on 30 November 2007.

Nujoma published his autobiography, Where Others Wavered in 2001. He received multiple honours and awards for his leadership, including the Lenin Peace Prize and the Indira Gandhi Peace Prize. The Parliament of Namibia conferred on him the titles "Founding President of the Republic of Namibia" and "Father of the Namibian Nation". In 2007, SWAPO named him "Leader of the Namibian Revolution".