Namibia was often called Africa’s last colony. Now it is the first post-apartheid state. This article outlines the political, economic and social legacy of apartheid: – the expropriation of land and mineral resources, the forced removals to overcrowded Bantustans, the iniquities of the migrant labour system and the impoverishment of Africans, in terms of cash income, housing, health, nutrition and education, in one of the richest countries in Africa – a legacy compounded by a history of genocide and a bitter war of liberation. The paper addresses two important questions: (1) How far can Namibia offer a model for a post-apartheid South Africa, by securing a more equitable distribution of land and resources, greater equality of opportunity through education, and a non-racial, democratic system? (2) Can this fragile economy achieve genuine independence, given its heavy dependence on international commodity markets, on foreign investment and expertise, and in particular on South Africa for imports of most basic foodstuffs and far communications with the outside world? Two specifically Namibian problems are discussed in some detail: (a) the South African retention of Walvis Bay – the country’s only deepwater port – against all the logic of geography and economics; (b) The residual debts due to South African banks, which were incurred by the illegal South African administration for the support of white privilege and the repression of black Namibians, especially the war against SWAPO. The author finds some ground for optimism in the productive capacity of the land; the determined pragmatism of the new SWAPO government, especially its liberal approach to foreign investment; in the drive for national reconciliation; and above all in the international support of other African states, through SADCC, the OAU, the UN and the ECA, the Front Line States and the OAU. Only the West is lagging behind in the provision of much needed aid to enable Namibia to transform its economic structure.
