Peter Hitjitevi Katjavivi (born 12 May 1941) is a Namibian politician who is the Speaker of the National Assembly of Namibia since March 2015 and the chancellor of the

Namibia University of Science and Technology The Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), formerly known as Polytechnic of Namibia, is a public university located in the city of Windhoek, Namibia. Andrew Niikondo is its acting vice-chancellor. NUST was headed by the founding ...

from 1992 to 2003. Previously he was the founding Vice-Chancellor of the

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 ...

from 1992 to 2003, Ambassador to the European Union from 2003 to 2006, Ambassador to Germany from 2006 to 2008, and Director General of the National Planning Commission from 2008 to 2010.

Life and career

Peter Katjavivi was born in Okahandja, and attended a primary school in Windhoek, then the

Augustineum Secondary School The Augustineum Secondary School, established in 1866, is among the oldest schools in Namibia. Originally situated in Otjimbingwe, it was relocated to Okahandja in 1890, and finally to Windhoek in 1968. Previously also known as the Augustineum ...

in Okahandja (1960–61) and the Government College Umuahia, Nigeria (1963-1966). In 1966/67 he began studying History, Law and Political Science at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Katjavivi joined

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 ...

in the 1960s and was head of SWAPO's overseas offices in London. In 1986 he obtained a doctorate (DPhil) at

St Antony's College, Oxford St Antony's College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1950 as the result of the gift of French merchant Sir Antonin Besse of Aden, St Antony's specialises in international relations, economic ...

. In 1989, he was a member of the Constituent Assembly of Namibia. From 1992 to 2003 he was Vice-Chancellor of the

, the foundation of which he had significant influence. Katjavivi was a member of numerous national and international educational, cultural and research organizations. He served as President of the Namibia Economic Policy Research Unit beginning in 1990, as Chairman of the Council of National Monuments (now the National Heritage Council of Namibia) from 1992 to 2000, and as an Executive Council Member of UNESCO from 1993 to 1997. From 2003 to 2006 he was Namibia's Ambassador to the European Union in Brussels, and from 2006 to 2008, Ambassador to Germany. He was appointed as Director-General of the National Planning Commission on 8 April 2008. Following the November 2009 parliamentary election, President

Hifikepunye Pohamba Hifikepunye Lucas Pohamba (born 18 August 1936) is a Namibian politician who served as the second president of Namibia from 21 March 2005 to 21 March 2015. He won the 2004 presidential election overwhelmingly as the candidate of SWAPO, and was ...

appointed Katjavivi to the National Assembly as one of the six non-voting members of parliament appointed by the President for the term that began in March 2010. Subsequently, he was SWAPO's Chief Whip in the National Assembly. He was elected to the National Assembly in the November 2014 parliamentary election as a SWAPO candidate. When the National Assembly began sitting for its new term on 20 March 2015, Katjavivi was sworn in as Speaker of Parliament, succeeding Theo-Ben Gurirab. In 2016 he was appointed

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of the

(NUST).

Personal life

Katjavivi is married to a British woman Jane, and has five children. Besides his native Herero he speaks five other languages.

Awards

*Ordre des Palmes Académiques , France, 1996 *Distinguished academic visitor award, New Delhi , India, 1998 *Honorary Doctorate of the

University of Joensuu The University of Eastern Finland ( fi, Itä-Suomen yliopisto) is a university in Finland founded in 2010 with campuses in Joensuu and Kuopio. History The Finnish Parliament passed the Universities Act on June 16, 2009, which, among other things ...

, Finland, 1999 *Certificate of Service to the Executive Council of the Association of African Universities (AAU), 2002 * Most Brilliant Order of the Sun, First Class, Heroes' Day 2014

Publications

*''The Road to Namibian Independence'', Gamsberg Macmillan, Windhoek. *''Church and Liberation in Namibia'', Zwan Publications, London, 1989. *''A History of Resistance in Namibia'', James Currey, London, 1988

References

External links

Interview with Peter Katjavivi by Tor Sellström within the project Nordic Documentation on the Liberation Struggle in Southern Africa
– dated 20 March 1995 {{DEFAULTSORT:Katjavivi, Peter 1941 births Living people People from Okahandja Herero people SWAPO politicians Speakers of the National Assembly (Namibia) Namibian diplomats Namibia University of Science and Technology University of Namibia Government College Umuahia alumni University of Dar es Salaam alumni Alumni of St Antony's College, Oxford