Peya Mushelenga facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Honourable
Peya Mushelenga
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| Minister of International Relations & Cooperation | |
| Assumed office 9 February 2024 |
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| President | Nangolo Mbumba |
| Preceded by | Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah |
| Minister of Information and Communications Technology | |
| In office 21 March 2020 – 9 February 2024 |
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| President | Hage Geingob Nangolo Mbumba |
| Preceded by | Stanley Simataa |
| Succeeded by | Emma Theofelus |
| Minister of Urban and Rural Development | |
| In office 8 February 2018 – 21 March 2020 |
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| President | Hage Geingob |
| Preceded by | Sophia Shaningwa |
| Succeeded by | Erastus Uutoni |
| Deputy minister of International Relations and Cooperation | |
| In office 21 March 2010 – 8 February 2018 |
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| President | Hifikepunba Pohamba Hage Geingob |
| Succeeded by | Christine ǁHoebes |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 1, 1975 Oshigambo, Oshikoto Region |
| Alma mater | University of Namibia University of South Africa Open University of Tanzania University of London Eastern and Southern African Management Institute University of the Western Cape |
Peya Mushelenga is a well-known politician and poet from Namibia. He was born on September 1, 1975, in Oshigambo, a place in northern Namibia. He is famous for being very educated, having earned fourteen university degrees!
He is a member of the SWAPO political party. Since 2005, he has been a part of the National Assembly of Namibia, which is like Namibia's parliament. He has also served in the Cabinet of Namibia (a group of top government officials) in different important roles. Since February 9, 2024, he has been the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation.
Early Life and Amazing Education
Peya Mushelenga was born in Oshigambo in the Oshikoto Region of northern Namibia. He went to Oluno Senior Secondary School until 1992. After that, he started his university studies at the University of Namibia (UNAM).
Mr. Mushelenga has achieved an incredible fourteen university degrees! A newspaper called New Era even called him "Namibia's most avid scholar." Here are some of the degrees he earned:
- Bachelor of Arts (BA) in History and Political Studies from the University of Namibia (UNAM) in 1995.
- BA Honours in International Politics from the University of South Africa (UNISA) in 1997.
- Master of Arts (MA) in International Politics from UNISA in 2009.
- Bachelor of Laws (B Juris) from UNAM in 2011.
- LLB (Honours) from UNAM in 2014.
- Doctor of Literature and Philosophy (D Litt et Phil) in International Politics from UNISA in 2015.
- BA in Economics from the Open University of Tanzania (OUT) in 2017.
- Master of Laws (LLM) from UNAM in 2017.
- Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Eastern and Southern African Management Institute (ESAMI) in 2018.
- Bachelor of Education (BEd) from OUT in 2019.
- Master of Science (MSc) in Finance from the University of London, United Kingdom, in 2020.
- PhD in Criminal Justice Law from the University of the Western Cape, South Africa, in 2022.
- Bachelor of Theology (BTh) from UNISA in 2022.
- Master of Education (MEd) in English from Great Zimbabwe University in 2023.
He is also a qualified lawyer, meaning he can practice law in the High Court of Namibia.
His Career in Government
After getting his first degree, Peya Mushelenga worked as a teacher at Nehale Senior Secondary School in 1996. Then, he worked for the government until 1998. After that, he joined a company called NamPower.
He became very involved in student politics in the 1980s with the Namibia National Students Organisation. Later, he became a top organizer for the SWAPO Party Youth League. He was elected to important leadership roles within the youth league in 1997 and 2002. In 2002, he was also elected to the main SWAPO Central Committee, being its youngest member at the time. He was re-elected to this committee in 2007 and 2012.
In 2005, Mr. Mushelenga became a member of the Parliament of Namibia. In 2010, he was appointed as the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. He was promoted to Minister of Urban and Rural Development on February 8, 2018. Then, on March 21, 2020, he became the Minister of Information and Communication Technology. Since February 9, 2024, he has been serving as the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation.
Personal Life
Peya Mushelenga has also written a book of poetry. It is called Nando Na Li Toke and was published in 1996. The poems are written in the Ovambo language dialect called Ndonga.
