Hage Geingob, the president of Namibia, has died at the age of 82.
Geingob died at the Lady Pohamba Hospital in Windhoek, Namibia’s capital city, according to a statement from Nangolo Mbumba, acting president.
Geingob revealed in January that he had been diagnosed with cancer.
“The Namibian nation has lost a distinguished servant of the people, a liberation struggle icon, the chief architect of our constitution and the pillar of the Namibian house,” the statement from Mbumba reads.
“At this moment of deepest sorrow, I appeal to the nation to remain calm and collected while the Government attends to all necessary state arrangements, preparations and other protocols.”
Geingob returned from a trip to the US last Wednesday after undergoing a two-day treatment as part of a medical trial.
He became president in 2015 and was re-elected in 2019 for a second and final term of five years.
A teacher by training, Geingob was Namibia’s first prime minister from 1990 to 2002, a role he also occupied between 2012 and 2015.
He was also the minister of trade and industry from 2008 to 2012.
