Ministry of Environment and Tourism (Namibia)

Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism (MEFT)

Ministry overview
Jurisdiction	Republic of Namibia
Headquarters	Windhoek
Minister responsible	Pohamba Shifeta
Website	www.met.gov.na

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism (MEFT) is a government ministry of Namibia, with headquarters in Windhoek.[1] It was created at Namibian independence in 1990 as Ministry of Wildlife, Conservation and Tourism.[2] The first Namibian environment and tourism minister was Niko Bessinger,[3] the current^[update] minister is Pohamba Shifeta.[4]

Mandate

MEFT official during field inspection with a drone

The ministries self-declared mission is "to promote biodiversity conservation in the Namibian environment through the sustainable utilization of natural resources and tourism development for the maximum social and economic benefit of its citizens." Its mandate is derived from the Constitution of Namibia, specifically Chapter 11 "Principles of State Policy" and Article 95 "Promotion of the Welfare of the People".[5]

Namibia is the first African country that has integrated environmental conservation in the national constitution.[6]

Structure

The ministry has three departments:[7]

• Tourism, Planning and Administration
• Natural Resources Management
• Environmental Affairs and Forestry

It further consists of seven directorates:

• Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP)
• Directorate of Forestry (DoF)
• Environmental Affairs (EA)
• Planning and Technical Services
• Scientific Services
• Tourism and Gaming
• Administration, Finance and Human Resources

Ministers

All environment and tourism ministers in chronological order are:[2]

#	Picture	Name	(Birth–Death)	Party	Term start	Term end
Minister of Wildlife, Conservation and Tourism
01		Niko Bessinger	1948–2008	SWAPO	1990	1995
Minister of Environment and Tourism
02		Gert Hanekom	1930–1999	SWAPO	1995	1997
03		Philemon Malima	1946–	SWAPO	1997	2005
04		Willem Konjore	1945–2021	SWAPO	2005	2008
05		Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah	1952–	SWAPO	2008	2012
06		Uahekua Herunga	1969–	SWAPO	2012	2015
07		Pohamba Shifeta	1968–	SWAPO	2015	2020
Minister of Environment, Forestry and Tourism
0		Pohamba Shifeta	1968–	SWAPO	2020

This list is complete and up to date as of April 2022.

See also

• List of national parks of Namibia
• Protected areas of Namibia

References

1. "Contact Us". Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism. Retrieved 2019-11-02.
2. Sherbourne, Robin. Guide to the Namibian Economy 2013/14. Institute for Public Policy Research. pp. 302, 303. ISBN 978-99945-78-14-6.
3. Christof Maletzky (26 March 2008): Niko Bessinger passes away The Namibian
4. "Geingob announces Cabinet". The Namibian. 20 March 2015.
5. "Ministry of Environment and Tourism Namibia - About Us". www.met.gov.na. Government of Namibia. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
6. "Namibia: Environmental Law Context Report". africanlii.org. African Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
7. "Ministry of Environment and Tourism Namibia - Tourism, Planning and Administration". www.met.gov.na. Government of Namibia. Retrieved 8 October 2021.

External links

• Official website Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism
• Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism at the Commonwealth of Nations