Martha Namundjebo-Tilahun 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 businesswoman and politician. She is the former president of the

Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry The Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry is the industrial and Chamber of Commerce in Namibia. It is headquartered in the capital Windhoek Windhoek (, , ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the ...

(NCCI). In 2017 she was a candidate for the position of Deputy Secretary-General of the

Swapo Party 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 ...

Early life and education

Martha Namundjebo was born in

Odibo Odibo is a village in the north of Namibia close to the Angolan border known for its Anglican mission ''St Mary''. It belongs to the Oshikango electoral constituency in the Ohangwena Region. Odibo is also an Archdeaconry in the Diocese of Nam ...

village in the north of Namibia. She was raised in Olunghono and went to Engela High School. She obtained a

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in Business Administration and Management from Saint Paul's College

Lawrenceville, Virginia Lawrenceville is a town in Brunswick County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,438 at the 2010 census. Located by the Meherrin River, it is the county seat of Brunswick County. In colonial times, Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswoo ...

. Namundjebo further holds an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

in Finance from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, and another MBA from

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...

, likewise in California.

Career

After the retirement of

Harold Pupkewitz Harold Pupkewitz (14 July 1915 – 27 April 2012) was a Lithuanian born, Namibian entrepreneur and member of the President's Economic Advisory Council. He was the Executive Chairman of Pupkewitz Holdings, a group of builders' merchants, car sal ...

, Namundjebo-Tilahun succeeded him as president of Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) in 2010. She held this position until 2014 when Sven Thieme was elected. Namundjebo-Tilahun is also the chairperson of the SADC Chamber of Commerce and sits on the board of several Namibian companies, including

Standard Bank Namibia Standard Bank Namibia Limited, commonly referred to as Standard Bank Namibia, is a commercial bank in Namibia. It is licensed, supervised and regulated by the Bank of Namibia, the central bank and national banking regulator. Since 19 November ...

. She owns Namibia's only Five-Star hotel, the

Hilton Hotel Hilton Hotels & Resorts (formerly known as Hilton Hotels) is a global brand of full-service hotels and resorts and the flagship brand of American multinational hospitality company Hilton. The original company was founded by Conrad Hilton. As ...

Windhoek Windhoek (, , ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek in 20 ...

. In 2021, documents forming part of the Congo Hold-Up revealed financial links between a Namibian fishing company owned by Namundjebo-Tilahun and alleged illicit funds of former DRC president Jospeh Kabila.

Private life

Her husband Haddis Tilahun, is the founder and executive director of th
United Africa Group
the company where she serves as chairperson. They have three children.

Awards

* African Business Leader of the Year, 2013,

Corporate Council on Africa The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) is a trade association focusing on strengthening commercial relationships between the United States and the African continent. History The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), based in Washington D.C., is a nonp ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, United States * Doctor ''

honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

'' in Business Administration, 2015,

University of Namibia The University of Namibia (UNAM) is a multi-campus public research university in Namibia, as well as the largest university in the country. It was established by an act of Parliament on 31 August 1992. Background UNAM comprises the follow ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Namundjebo-Tilahun, Martha Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People from Ohangwena Region Namibian women in business Santa Clara University alumni Saint Paul's College (Virginia) alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni Namibian business executives