Sophia Shaningwa

Sophia Shaningwa (born 13 May 1959 in Outapi) is a Namibian politician, currently serving as secretary general of the SWAPO party.

Education Shaningwa left Namibia for exile in May 1980 and underwent military training as a People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN) combatant. She studied at Ivanova Teachers' Training College in the Soviet Union. She later served as the Governor of the Omusati Region. In 2014, she was elected to the National Assembly. She had previously worked at the National Housing Enterprise and served as Windhoek West councillor. During that time, her ministry was awarded a cheque by Samlam to eliminate the bucket toilet system, because sanitation and hygiene are believed to be a major challenge in the rural areas. In 2017, Shaningwa was elected secretary general of SWAPO.

Awards Shaningwa was conferred the Most Distinguished Order of Namibia: First Class on Heroes' Day 2014.