Parliament of Namibia


Parliament is the law-making body of Namibia legislature. It consists of two chambers:
  1. The National Assembly initiates and approves laws. It consists of 104 members, 96 of which are elected by parliamentary election. The other eight are appointed by the president.
  2. The National Council advises the National Assembly on any required changes to subordinate laws that result from law-making in the National Assembly. It can be tasked by the National Assembly to perform other tasks. The National Council consists of 42 representatives of the Regional Councils; every Regional Council in the fourteen regions of Namibia elects three representatives.
All cabinet members are 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.
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. Prior to the 2014 general elections the constitution was amended to increase both chambers to their current size.

Speakers of Parliament