WINDHOEK – Two permanent secretaries and two deputy permanent secretaries are among the ten new diplomats that were commissioned by President Hifikepunye Pohamba at State House yesterday.
Steve Katjiuanjo the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Youth, National Service, Sport and Culture has been appointed High Commissioner-designate to Great Britain in London where he will replace George Liswaniso who also served as Namibia’s High Commissioner to Northern Ireland.
Katjiuanjo, who appeared over the moon and kept smiling throughout the commissioning ceremony, replaces George Liswaniso who was recently recalled from that mission.
Since his assignment to the youth ministry after the reshuffle of permanent secretaries last year, Katjiuanjo has been having tough times with establishing a good relationship with some senior officials at the ministry after his decision to reshuffle the top management, which included the long-serving Director of Sports Dr Vetumbuavi Veii to head the Directorate of Culture.
Dr Peingeondjabi Shipoh, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice has been appointed High Commissioner-designate to the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Shipoh replaces the recently recalled Selma Ashipala-Musavyi. Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works and Transport, Balbina Daes Pienaar, was appointed as Namibia’s Ambassador-designate to the Republic of Zimbabwe where she will fill the position left vacant by the recent recall of Panduleni Shingenge.
The appointments also included Wilbard Hellao, the Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a veteran diplomat. Hellao is the Ambassador-designate to the Democratic Republic of Congo replacing Abed Ringo, said to be recalled as well.
Other diplomats are Pius Dunaiski, the Director of Bilateral Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who is Namibia’s High Commissioner-designate to India. He fills the position of Dr Samuel Mbambo, appointed as Governor of the Kavango Region. Dunaiski is not new to diplomacy, although this is the first time he will be head of mission, having served in several countries including Angola where he served as first secretary until 2012.
The appointments by President Pohamba also saw two women from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs being promoted to head foreign missions. These are Morina Muuondjo, the Deputy Director for Bilateral Affairs who has been appointed as Ambassador-designate to Sweden and her colleague Sabine Böhlke-Möller as Ambassador-designate to the United Nations Office in Geneva and at other International Organizations in Switzerland.
Muuondjo fills the vacancy left by Daniel Smith who was recalled. Böhlke-Möller is one of the long serving senior staff of the foreign affairs ministry and is described by many as one of the country’s hardest working civil servants, particularly on issues related to bilateral agreements that Namibia has with other countries. She replaces Simon Maruta who served as Charge d’Affaires at that mission.
Maruta is now the Ambassador-designate to Austria replacing former Deputy Minister Raphael Dinyando who at the time of his demise yesterday was also about to return home.
Sophia Nangombe is the new Ambassador-designate to Japan filling the position left by Bernard Kukuri who is now the Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister.
The Namibian Mission in Japan was established in 2010 by Lucky Gawanab who only served a year and left after his appointment as Deputy Chief of Protocol. Both Gawanab and Kukuri served as Charge d’Affaires but Nangombe will become a full ambassador.
The reshuffle will also see one of the longest serving Namibian diplomats Hopelong Iipinge returning home since independence. Iipinge who is now Namibian Ambassador to Cuba is to be replaced by Dr Jerobeam Shaanika who served as Namibia’s Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations in New York.
Hopelong Iipinge is said to be the only diplomat who has never been home since the establishment of Namibian foreign missions at independence. It is not yet clear whether he will go in retirement or get a new senior position at foreign affairs.
By Tonateni Shidhudhu