Opinions

PAUL T. SHIPALE (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) INTRODUCTION Regional stability in Southern Africa has emerged as a multifaceted concern engaging stakeholders across political, economic, and social spectrums. While conventional security paradigms often dominate discourse on regional stability, progressive African leadership has increasingly reoriented focus toward people-centered development, peacebuilding, and regional integration. This paradigm shift is exemplified by the diplomatic initiatives of Namibia's President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, whose recent engagements with neighboring Botswana, Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Tanzania represent more than ceremonial diplomacy—they constitute a deliberate strategy of transformative regionalism and underscore how diplomacy functions simultaneously as negotiation and as…

Sakaria Johannes  The concept of a "mafia state" has become a critical framework for analysing political systems where state institutions serve private networks of power rather than the public good. These are not failed states in the traditional sense but rather functioning kleptocracies that wear the mask of democratic legitimacy. While Namibia has long enjoyed a reputation as a stable democracy in southern Africa, recent political developments and corruption scandals suggest it may be undergoing a quiet transformation. By examining scholarly definitions of mafia states and linking them to key Namibian cases—including Fishrot, election irregularities, the N$8 million NDF car…