Marten Nenkete Kapewasha (born 19 September 1949) 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 diplomat and politician. A member of the

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 ...

Central Committee since 1991, Kapewasha was appointed Namibia's High Commissioner to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

in September 2005 following a six-year stint in the same position in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Education

Born in Oshinyadhila,

Oshana Region Oshana is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Oshakati. The towns of Oshakati, Ongwediva and Ondangwa, all situated with this region, form an urban cluster with the second largest population concentration in Namibia after the ...

, Kapewasha graduated from Ongwediva Training College in 1970. He earned his Senior Certificate in Economics, Geography and History via correspondence in 1981. In 2003, he earned a diploma in Security, Defence and Law Enforcement at the Mikhail Lomonosov Academy in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

Namibian War of Independence

Kapewasha was a SWAPO youth activist until his arrest alongside

Jerry Ekandjo Jerry Lukiiko Ekandjo (born 17 March 1947) is a Namibian politician, former anti-apartheid activist and political prisoner. He is one of the founding members of the SWAPO Youth League and has been one of the most active internal leading members o ...

and Jacob Nghidinwa in 1973. He then served eight years on

Robben Island Robben Island ( af, Robbeneiland) is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, north of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the Dutch word for seals (''robben''), hence the Dutch/Afrik ...

, being released in 1981. He then began teaching at an independent school in Gibeon in the

Hardap Hardap is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Mariental. Hardap contains the municipality of Mariental, the towns Rehoboth and Aranos, and the self-governed villages Gibeon, Gochas, Kalkrand, Stampriet and Maltahöhe. It is ...

region. Following release, he rejoined political activism with the SWAPO Youth League and was elected Deputy Secretary of the organization in 1989.

Political career

Kapewasha won a seat in the 1992 Regional Council elections in

Wanaheda Samora Machel Constituency (formerly known as Wanaheda Constituency) is a constituency in Windhoek in the Khomas Region of central Namibia. The constituency is located across four northern suburbs of Windhoek: Wanaheda, Greenwell Matongo, Gorea ...

, which led to his representation of

Khomas Khomas is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia. Its name refers to the Khomas Highland, a high plateau landscape that dominates this administrative unit. Khomas is centered on the capital city Windhoek and provides for this reason superior trans ...

region in the National Council. From 1994 to 1996, he served as Namibia's Deputy Minister of Youth and Sport. From 1996 to 1999, he served as Minister of Lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation.

Sources

Namibian Institute for Democracy
Guide to Namibian Politics, 2007 1949 births Living people Members of the National Council (Namibia) Namibian diplomats People from Oshana Ambassadors of Namibia to Russia High Commissioners of Namibia to India SWAPO politicians Government ministers of Namibia {{Africa-diplomat-stub