Namibia Elects First Female President 

Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah of Namibia's ruling South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO) party has been elected president and will be the country's first female leader. Results from the country's electoral commission showed on Tuesday that she had won over 57% of the votes cast, with her closest rival Panduleni Itula gaining 26%.

Nandi-Ndaitwah, 72, is the current vice president. Her victory will extend SWAPO's 34 years in power since it led Namibia to independence from apartheid South Africa in 1990.

“The Namibian nation has voted for peace and stability,” Nandi-Ndaitwah said after being declared president-elect.

Opposition parties have rejected the results after the election was marred by technical problems, including shortages of ballot papers and other issues, causing election officials to extend voting until Saturday. Long queues meant that some voters gave up on the first day of voting after waiting for up to 12 hours.

The opposition parties say the extension was illegal and have pledged to challenge the results in court.

Nandi-Ndaitwah joined SWAPO in the 1960s when it was fighting for independence and has served in numerous senior roles including foreign minister in the democratic era.

Some African observers have commended the development stressing how this would further reflect Africa's readiness and willingness to embrace gender equality in politics. They expressed optimism that other African countries including Nigeria could do well to emulate same and provide opportunities for women to attain such exalted positions.