Eddie Shimwethelini Amkongo (born 1 December 1945) is a

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

n civil servant and diplomat. A chief diplomat with

SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (, SWAPO; af, Suidwes-Afrikaanse Volks Organisasie, SWAVO; german: Südwestafrikanische Volksorganisation, SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former ind ...

and later independent Namibia, Amkongo was appointed chairperson of the Public Service Commission in 2006.

Early life and exile

Born near

Ondangwa Ondangwa (earlier spelling ''Ondangua'') is a town in the Oshana Region of northern Namibia, bordering the Oshikoto Region. Ondangwa was first established as a mission station of the Finnish Missionary Society (the FMS) in 1890. In 1914, it became ...

, Amkongo studied at

Oshigambo High School Oshigambo High School, also Oshigambo Senior Secondary School, is a school in Oshigambo in the Oshikoto Region of northern Namibia. It is situated approximately 30 km east of Ondangwa. Oshigambo High School is surrounded by some of the specia ...

Oshigambo Oshigambo is a settlement in the Oshikoto Region of northern Namibia. It is situated on the banks of Oshigambo River east of the Etosha pan. The village features a secondary school, Oshigambo High School Oshigambo High School, also Oshigambo Sen ...

Oshikoto Region Oshikoto is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, named after Lake Otjikoto. Its capital is Omuthiya. The city of Tsumeb, Otjikoto's capital until 2008, and the towns of Omuthiya and Oniipa are also situated in this region. , Oshikoto had 112, ...

in the 1960s and he was found with

publications and letters from friend

Helmut Angula Helmut Pau Kangulohi Angula (born 11 November 1945) is a Namibian businessman, politician, former cabinet minister and writer. He is currently the director of various private companies, after leaving government in 2010, and a longtime member of th ...

from the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. He later became a leading organizer for SWAPO in northern Namibia. From 1971-72, Amkongo studied at Turfloop University, a black-only university in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. In June 1974, Amkongo and several SWAPO organisers fled into exile to SWAPO's camp in Oshatotwa,

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

, where he received

military training Military education and training is a process which intends to establish and improve the capabilities of military personnel in their respective roles. Military training may be voluntary or compulsory duty. It begins with recruit training, proceed ...

. He also studied at Evelyn Hone College in

Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was ab ...

while in exile. He then worked for

Voice of Namibia Voice of Namibia (VoN) was a pirate radio station propagating Namibian independence, and the political mouthpiece of the South West African People's Organization (SWAPO) during the Namibian War of Independence. It operated from 1966 until Namibian ...

radio station in Zambia then

Brazzaville Brazzaville (, kg, Kintamo, Nkuna, Kintambo, Ntamo, Mavula, Tandala, Mfwa, Mfua; Teke: ''M'fa'', ''Mfaa'', ''Mfa'', ''Mfoa''Roman Adrian Cybriwsky, ''Capital Cities around the World: An Encyclopedia of Geography, History, and Culture'', ABC-CLI ...

People's Republic of the Congo The People's Republic of the Congo (french: République populaire du Congo) was a Marxist–Leninist socialist state that existed in the Republic of the Congo from 1969 to 1992. The People's Republic of the Congo was founded in December 1969 ...

. He was a key diplomat for SWAPO abroad during the 1980s; he was based in

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

(1981–85) and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

(1985–89) and was the chief diplomat for West Africa and much of Western Europe while based there. In the late 1980s, Amkongo was one of SWAPO's chief negotiators during the run-up to independence.Eddie Amkongo
''Namibia Institute for Democracy''

Diplomacy and civil service

Following Namibia's independence in 1990, Amkongo became a key civil servant and diplomat in the newly established government. He served as his country's ambassador to

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

, home of the

Organization of African Unity The Organisation of African Unity (OAU; french: Organisation de l'unité africaine, OUA) was an intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 32 signatory governments. One of the main heads for OAU's ...

. He also held several key domestic posts, including in the Office of the President and as cabinet secretary. In 2000, he was sent to the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

as Namibia's top diplomat during the

Second Congo War The Second Congo War,, group=lower-alpha also known as the Great War of Africa or the Great African War and sometimes referred to as the African World War, began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in August 1998, little more than a year a ...

. From 2000 to 2003, Amkongo was a political advisor to the foreign forces supporting Congo's government during the implementation of the

Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement The Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement attempted to end the Second Congo War through a ceasefire, release of prisoners of war, and the deployment of an international peacekeeping force under the auspices of the United Nations. The heads of state of Angola ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amkongo, Eddie 1945 births Living people People from Oshana Region People's Liberation Army of Namibia personnel SWAPO politicians Expatriates in the Republic of the Congo Namibian expatriates in France Namibian expatriates in Senegal Namibian expatriates in South Africa Namibian expatriates in Zambia Ambassadors of Namibia to the Democratic Republic of the Congo Ambassadors of Namibia to Ethiopia University of Limpopo alumni Oshigambo High School alumni