(2018) 2 African Human Rights Yearbook 4 4.1 143 STATUS OF WOMEN IN POLITICAL AND DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES IN NAMIBIA Trends and status of women in governance and decision-making structures in Namibia Since independence in 1990, Namibia has made strides in elevating women in public life. Largely, the newly inherited State, after a kilometric struggle for nationalism against colonialism (1886-1915) and apartheid (1948-1989), still mirrored a patriarchal, sexist and racially divided society. To begin with, women’s representation in the UN led peace negotiations for an independent Namibia, under the auspices of the Constituent Assembly, involved only two women amongst a total of seventy-two representatives. This process undermined the important role of women in transitional and postconflict reconstruction processes. The status quo was maintained in subsequent electoral processes. After the first national elections in 1989, women’s parliamentary representation stood at 8,3 per cent, with steady progress made in the 1994, 2000, and 2005 elections.50 During this period, the few women who made it to parliament largely remained invisible and excluded from key positions of State power where their capabilities and skills could be visible to the public. As of 2017 however, the representation of women in parliament stood at 41,7 per cent. This figure indicates a significant increase of women in Parliament. But the question remains whether this significant number of women has been nurtured in key positions of State authority where their strengths and capabilities can be evidential to the public. The combined study by the UN Women and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in 2012,51 evidences the sexist allocation of ministerial positions in governments; with high prevalence of women in the conventional social, family, and development areas, with the more prestigious and politically armed civil services, such as defence, finance and foreign affairs still carrying a ‘masculine imagery’. It is worth noting that in Namibia however, the trend is changing with women having of late been called to key positions of central government, such as prime minister, foreign affairs, finance, and labour ministers respectively. But in the past 28 years of independence, no woman has held a ministerial position in defence, which has been seen as the domain of male figures. Representation of women in the Upper House of Parliament, loosely called the National Council, also shows great advances. Starting from a mere 3,8 per cent (1 out of 26 members) in 1992, when the 50 51 According to the IPPR Democracy Report of 2014, by 1994 women accounted for 12,5%, 25% in 2000, 23,6% in 2005, and 22,2% in 2010. UN Women and IPU ‘Women in politics: 2012’ 1 January 2012. According to this study, as of 2012 between 79 and 89% of women around the world hold the position of ministers in social, family and women’s issues, whereas only 7% is ministers of defence and veteran affairs.