Reverend Ngeno-Zach Nakamhela (born 24 April 1945 in Omundudu, Ohangwena Region) 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 ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN). From 1992 to 1999, he played a prominent role in Namibian politics as General Secretary of the

Council of Churches in Namibia The Council of Churches in Namibia (CCN) is an ecumenical organisation in Namibia. Its member churches together represent 1.5 million people, 90% of the population of Namibia. It is a member of the Fellowship of Christian Councils in Southern Afric ...

(CCN). As head of the CCN, the Lutheran leader called for an end to the

Namibia Defence Force The Namibian Defence Force (NDF) comprises the national military forces of Namibia. It was created when the country, then known as South West Africa, gained independence from South Africa in 1990. Chapter 15 of the Constitution of Namibia establ ...

's involvement in 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 ...

. He was also active in campaign's for an end to

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

and promoting the rights of older people. In 2001, he became the pastor of an inner city congregation in

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 ...

Education

Nakamhela began studying theology in 1969 at the

Paulinum Theological Seminary Paulinum may refer to: * ''Paulinum'' (hydrozoan), a genus of hydrozoans in the order Anthoathecata, family unassigned *Paulinum (University of Leipzig), university building of University of Leipzig *Paulinum Theological Seminary, Windhoek, Namibia ...

in Otjimbingwe, Erongo Region. During the years 1973–1986 he studied at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

and

Amsterdam Free University The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (abbreviated as ''VU Amsterdam'' or simply ''VU'' when in context) is a public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, being founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research ...

.Ngeno Nakamhela
at Namibia Institute for Democracy

References

1945 births Living people Namibian Lutheran clergy People from Ohangwena Region People from Windhoek {{Namibia-bio-stub