The memorial service for the first black mayor of Tsumeb, Susan Nghidinwa, will be held on Wednesday at the Inner City Lutheran congregation in Windhoek.

Nghidinua died last week, aged 85.

The late Nghidinwa served in various capacities, both in the public and private sectors, with some posts served outside of Namibia's borders until her retirement 20 years ago.

She was born in Eenhana 85 years ago and completed her lower and secondary education at Eenhana, Omundaungilo, and Engela.

According to a biography provided by the family, she trained as a teacher and taught at Eenhana and Omundaungilo until the early 1960s, when she moved to the bright lights of Tsumeb.

While working as a nanny there, she was recruited into Swapo by Andimba Toivo ya Toivo and Hifikepunye Pohamba in 1961.

In 1974, then a married woman, Nghidinua joined the liberation struggle in Angola with her husband, Tulipohamba Nghidinwa, and their seven children.

The Nghidinwa family is lauded as among the first families to have joined Swapo in exile.

After being educated at the UN Institute for Namibia, she then worked at the Swapo office in Lusaka as a representative of the Women's Council.

Nghidinwa was a staunch women's rights activist, serving under the banner of the Swapo Party Women's Council from the 1970s and under the ambit of the Pan-African Women's Organisation.

She was a lobbyist for aid, including food, clothes, and educational materials for use in SWAPO camps in Zambia and Angola, in her capacity as the SWC Secretary for Foreign Affairs.
 
Prior to independence, she mobilized support for Swapo in her hometown of Tsumeb 

In 1993, Nghidinua made history when she was elected as the first black woman to serve as Tsumeb's Mayor.

The current Mayor of Tsumeb, Matheus Hangula, said after her election as Mayor, she managed to build a bridge and barriers to unite the town's black and white municipal employees and the community at large.

He added that, among her many accomplishments, the late Nghidinwa created the Tsumeb Cultural Village and Open Air Museum.

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Photo Credits
Confidente
Author
Lahia Hatutale