Fellow Namibians, good evening on this evening of the last day of the year 2024. I am addressing the Namibian nation with mixed emotions, but also with determination and courage. This year has been extremely challenging and one of mixed fortune for the Namibian people. We entered the year 2024 with a profound sense of sadness following the sudden passing of our beloved president, His Excellency Dr. Hage Geingob, on the 4th of February 2024. Our governance architecture was tested but remained firm throughout the far-reaching institutional changes that occurred on that fateful day, a day on which I became the fourth President of the Republic of Namibia and Her Excellency Dr. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah the third Vice President of Namibia. Importantly, as a people we remained steadfast and united during that period of untold grief until the burial ceremony of the mortal remains of President Geingob on the 25th of February 2024 at the Heroes' Acre. Without doubt, from our collective grief we have emerged as a stronger and much more united nation. I will remain forever grateful for the manner in which the Namibian nation dealt with that overwhelming sad chapter in the journey of our nation. Let this become proof that Namibia is indeed the land of the brave, that we are truly one Namibia and one nation.
Fellow Namibians, on account of drought, you will recall that I declared a state of emergency on the 22nd of May 2024. The government has since rolled out emergency drought relief to affected communities. These efforts have borne fruit. Overall, the initiatives we have undertaken over the past nine years to strengthen social safety nets are commendable and they continue to provide an important buffer during periods of drought and other economic challenges. In anticipation of more rain in the coming days, I urge all offices, ministries, and agencies to remain vigilant and to ensure that no one dies of hunger or is left food insecure ahead of the end of the rainy season.
Fellow Namibians, indeed this year, which President Geingob had christened in his 2024 New Year message as the year of expectation, has been the most unusual year. We commenced the year with tears and sorrow none of us could have expected, but we are closing the year celebrating important gains in our democratic journey. For the first time in the history of our nation, the Namibian people have elected a woman to be the President of the Republic of Namibia. It is a milestone for our national efforts in gender inclusion and opens a new chapter in the noble pursuit of prosperity for our nation. Also, it is a milestone as we are witnessing in 2025 the emergence of a new generation of leaders, closing the chapter of a generation that went into exile to fight for freedom in the 1960s. I salute that glorious generation of the 1960s that is exiting the stage and allowing the generation of the 1970s and 1980s to take center stage. In the coming year, Namibia will go to the polls for the Regional Council and Local Authority elections. It is my hope that the Electoral Commission of Namibia will prepare well and organize this election that will further bolster our democracy.
We are closing the year 2024 with more gains in infrastructure development, sports, and other fields of national endeavor. Liina Ishmael made a sprint with her guide Sam Shima by winning gold in the women's T1 400-meter sprint during the Special Olympic Games in Paris, France. On infrastructure, we have added more kilometers of dual-carriage standard road to facilitate trade and commerce as part of our determination to become a leading logistics hub in Southern Africa. We have built more classrooms, more clinics, and police stations as part of our commitment to educate, healthier, and safer communities. We have made efforts to close the housing gap by giving Namibians shelter, to augment the brilliant efforts in housing provision by our second president, His Excellency Dr. Hifikepunye Pohamba. I am confident that Her Excellency Dr. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah and her cabinet will continue prioritizing housing. By mining oil and gas, critical raw materials, as well as green hydrogen, the Namibian economy has recovered to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. Moreover, growth in the non-mineral economy including tourism is expected to gain traction, which bodes well for job creation in 2025 and beyond. Mechanized and sustainable agriculture remains vital for national food security. Therefore, I am pleased with the ongoing progress in reforming green schemes and other sub-sectors of our agricultural economy. The efforts of government as well as those of citizens to guarantee peace and security have allowed for growth in various economic activities and completion of projects like the Harambee Prosperity Plan I and II.
Fellow Namibians, on the diplomatic front, we have worked with sister countries in the African Union and the Southern African Development Community to strengthen peace, security, and to promote development on our continent. It is our hope that Mozambique will return to normalcy from the post-electoral violence. It is also our hope that peace will prevail in Sudan, the Sahel, and the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Namibia and Germany were asked by the United Nations Secretary-General to co-chair the 2024 United Nations Summit for the Future during the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, USA. With lots of efforts, we were able to accomplish the task with the adoption of the historic Pact for the Future and its annexes: the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations. Through our work as co-chair of the Summit of the Future, we have once again demonstrated Namibia's commitment to multilateralism and left an indelible footprint in the history of the United Nations. We have also made tangible contributions by redoubling global efforts in the fight against climate change and inequality, always aiming for a fairer world. Namibia is a peaceful country and will continue the pursuit of justice, solidarity, and peace in a world that is becoming increasingly fluid, conflicted, and uncertain. Therefore, consistent with our commitment to diplomatic solutions to conflicts, I call for peace in the Middle East. I call for an end to the violence and violation of international humanitarian law in Sudan and Gaza. And I call for a ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Fellow Namibians, New Year's Eve gives us reason to reflect on the year that is passing into history and also to plan effectively for the year that lies ahead. New Year's Eve provides us with hope and promise for the new season. The coming year is important because our country will come of age by celebrating 35 years of independence. This will require more individual and collective efforts to realize the promise of prosperity, which was the clarion call stated at independence in 1990 by His Excellency Dr. Sam Nujoma, the father of the Namibian nation. In whatever you do, make sure that you plan to realize your dreams and aspirations. Make sure that your hopes and aspirations are part of your commitment, your contribution as a citizen for a better Namibia in 2025. Make sure that 2025 is the year of Namibia, a year during which we all hope for better and promise to do better, a year during which Namibia continues to become stronger and better for current and future generations. It is on this note of hope and promise that I wish all Namibians, residents, and visitors a happy and prosperous New Year 2025. Long live the Republic of Namibia! And I thank you.
