Under South African occupation

Pohamba was active in the Ovamboland People's Organization. When this national liberation movement transformed into SWAPO in 1960, Pohamba was a founding member of the organisation's new incarnation and left his job in the mine to work as a full-time organiser for the group.^[1][4]

In 1961 Pohamba went into exile. He travelled to Dar es Salaam to the newly-independent Tanganyika (today part of Tanzania) where he met Sam Nujoma, later Namibia's first president, for the first time. It was resolved that he should join a group of SWAPO members returning home and mobilising people there. On his way he was arrested in Rhodesia (today Zimbabwe) and was jailed in Bulawayo, then deported to Johannesburg. He spent six months in jail there and was then put under house arrest in Ovamboland.^[2]

In 1964 Pohamba again left Namibia. He went to Lusaka to set up SWAPO's Zambian office. He returned to Namibia in 1966 with Sam Nujoma, claiming that SWAPO leaders were not banned from travelling. They were nevertheless deported to Zambia a day after their arrival. Pohamba moved to Dar es Salaam again.^[2][5][6]

In 1971 SWAPO transferred Pohamba to Algeria; He became the movement's chief representative for northern Africa. In 1979 he became the party's chief of operations in Lusaka. From 1981 to 1982 he studied politics in the Soviet Union, and upon his return to Africa he moved to Luanda, Angola, where SWAPO's headquarters was at that time.^[2][1]

After independence of Namibia

Pohamba headed SWAPO's 1989 election campaign^[4] and was a SWAPO member of the Constituent Assembly, which was in place from November 1989 to March 1990,^[7] before becoming a member of the National Assembly at independence in March 1990.^[1] He was Minister of Home Affairs from March 1990 to 1995, Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources from 1995 to 1997,^[2][1] and Minister without portfolio from 1997 to March 2000.^[2][8] He was elected as secretary-general of SWAPO in 1997 and as its vice-president in 2002.^[5] On 26 January 2001, he was appointed as Minister of Lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation in addition to his above ministerial position,^[9] in which position he remained until becoming president in 2005.

Under Pohamba's leadership as Minister of Lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation, Namibia initiated a policy of partial land expropriation from landed white farmers to landless black ones. This policy was introduced to supplement the existing one of "willing buyer-willing seller" to try speed up the process.

After becoming president, Pohamba also took over the chancellorship of the University of Namibia from Nujoma in November 2011.^[10]

Presidency

Pohamba with United States President George W. Bush in June 2005.

Pohamba was selected as SWAPO's candidate for the 2004 presidential election at an extraordinary party congress held in May 2004. He received 213 votes out of 526 in the first round of voting; in the second round, held on 30 May, he won with 341 votes against 167 for Hidipo Hamutenya, having received the support of nearly all of those who had backed third place candidate Nahas Angula in the first round.^[11] In the presidential election, held on 15/16 November 2004, Pohamba won with 76.44% of the vote,^[12] in what has been described as a "landslide", but also denounced as flawed by the opposition.^[13] He was backed by Nujoma, who was then serving his third five-year term; Pohamba has been described as Nujoma's hand-picked successor.^[14] Pohamba took office as president on 21 March 2005^[15] and has since distinguished himself by careful but decisive moves against corruption.

Although there was speculation that Nujoma would seek re-election as SWAPO President in 2007 and then run for President of Namibia again in 2009, he denied these rumours in early October 2007, saying that he intended to step down as party leader in favour of Pohamba.^[16][17] On 29 November 2007, Pohamba was elected as SWAPO President at a party congress; he was the only candidate to be nominated and no voting was deemed necessary. Nujoma said that he was "passing the torch and mantle of leadership to comrade Pohamba".^[18] The congress also chose Pohamba as the party's only candidate for the 2009 presidential election.^[19][20]

2004 election poster with Pohamba.

Pohamba won a second term in the November 2009 presidential election, receiving 611,241 total votes (76.42%). The second place candidate, Hidipo Hamutenya (who had left SWAPO and gone into opposition), received 88,640 (11.08%).^[21]

Pohamba was unable to stand for re-election in 2014 due to constitutional term limits. The election was again won overwhelmingly by SWAPO, and Pohamba was succeeded by Hage Geingob on 21 March 2015. Less than a month later, on 19 April 2015, he retired as president of SWAPO.^[22]

He ended his term with high approval ratings, being hailed for pushing for gender equality and increased spending on housing and education.^[23]

Foreign honours

•  Liberia:
  • Grand Cordon of the Order of the Pioneers of Liberia (29 July 2009)^[25]

Awards

• Pohamba is a recipient of the Omugulugwombashe Medal for Bravery and Long Service.^[26]
• In 2011, he was awarded a Doctorate of Philosophy honoris causa by the University of Namibia.^[27]
• In 2015, he was awarded the 2014 Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership of $5 million by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation.^[28]
• On 29 April 2016, he was awarded a Doctorate honoris causa by the University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana