MASERU, March 26 -- A veteran politician, Dr Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has been inaugurated as Namibia's first female president, becoming the first woman to occupy this top office in that country and marking that nation's history. Her election makes Namibia the second country in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region to have a female head of state, following Tanzania's President Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan.

Dr Nandi-Ndaitwah has also appointed a woman as her Vice President, Lucia Witbooi.

Namibia has officially cemented its place in history as the first African country to have both a woman President and a woman Vice President.

These developments were welcomed by many people who indicated that they reflect a progressive shift ...