Parliament of Namibia

Parliament of Namibia
Parliament of Namibia
Type
Type	Bicameral
Houses	National Council; National Assembly
Leadership
Chairperson of the National Council	Lukas Sinimbo Muha, SWAPO ; since 15 December 2020
Speaker of the National Assembly	Peter Katjavivi, SWAPO ; since 21 March 2015
Structure
Seats	146; National Council (42); National Assembly (104)
National Council political groups	Government (28) SWAPO (28)Official opposition (6) LPM (6)Other parties (8) PDM (2) IPC (2) UDF (2) NUDO (1) Independent (1)
National Assembly political groups	Government (59) SWAPO (51) Appointed members (8)Official opposition (20) IPC (20) Other parties (25) AR (7) PDM (5) LPM (5) UDF (1) NEFF (1) SWANU (1) RP (1) NUDO (1) APP (1) NDP (1) BCP (1)
Elections
National Council voting system	Indirect election by regional councils
National Assembly voting system	Closed list proportional representation and appointments by the President
Last National Council election	25 November 2020
Last National Assembly election	27 November 2019
Meeting place
	Tintenpalast, Windhoek, Khomas Region, Namibia
Website
	www.parliament.na

The Parliament of Namibia is the national legislature of Namibia. It is a bicameral legislature and, thus, consists of two houses:^[1]^[2] the National Council (upper house) and the National Assembly (lower house).

All cabinet members are also members of the lower house. This situation has been criticised by Namibia's civil society and the opposition as creating a significant overlap between executive and legislature, undermining the separation of powers. The seniority of cabinet members generally relegate ordinary MPs to the back benches.^[3]

From Namibian independence until 2014 the National Assembly consisted of 78 members, 72 members elected by proportional representation and 6 members appointed by the president. The National Council had 26 representatives of the Regional Councils, 2 from each of the then thirteen regions.^[1] Prior to the 2014 general elections the constitution was amended to increase both chambers to their current size.^[2]

^ ^a ^b "GRN Structure. The Legislature". Government of Namibia. Archived from the original on 18 August 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
^ ^a ^b Quadri, Maryam Omolara; Thomas, Erika K (2018). "Women and political participation in Namibia and Nigeria: a comparative analysis of women in elective positions" (PDF). Journal for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences. 7 (2). University of Namibia: 6–9. ISSN 2026-7215.
^ Sasman, Catherine (22 March 2013). "Mbumba's presence in Cabinet under spotlight". The Namibian. Archived from the original on 13 April 2013.

[GRNleg-1] "GRN Structure. The Legislature". Government of Namibia. Archived from the original on 18 August 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2011.

[Nigeria-2] Quadri, Maryam Omolara; Thomas, Erika K (2018). "Women and political participation in Namibia and Nigeria: a comparative analysis of women in elective positions" (PDF). Journal for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences. 7 (2). University of Namibia: 6–9. ISSN 2026-7215.

[3] Sasman, Catherine (22 March 2013). "Mbumba's presence in Cabinet under spotlight". The Namibian. Archived from the original on 13 April 2013.

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