Derek James Klazen (born 31 May 1965 in

Walvis Bay Walvis Bay (; ; ) is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies. It is the List of cities in Namibia, second largest city in Namibia and the largest coastal city in the country. The city covers an area of of land. The bay is a ...

) is a

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

n politician and businessman. A member of

SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO ; , SWAVO; , SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former independence movement in Namibia (formerly South West Africa). Founded in 1960, it has been ...

, he was Namibia's Minister of Fisheries from 21 April 2021 to 21 March 2025. Klazen was born on 31 May 1965 in

, then an

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. He attended De Duine Secondary School until 1984 and then the Khomas Teachers College from 1985 to 1987, graduating with a diploma in education. In 1994 he obtained a higher diploma in education from

Windhoek College of Education The Windhoek College of Education (now known as the University of Namibia Khomasdal campus) is a public university in Khomasdal, Windhoek, Namibia. It opened in 1978 and is one of four national colleges of education in the country. Notable alumni ...

. Klazen is a

member and was a council member of Walvis Bay between 2004 and 2014, serving as mayor between 2006 and 2008, as well as in 2010. In the 2014 parliamentary election he was elected to

parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

and immediately appointed deputy minister of Urban and Rural Development. He served until April 2021 when he was promoted to minister and given the portfolio of fisheries and marine resources. Klazen was until 2021 board member and shareholder of KKNU Holdings, a fishing company in Walvis Bay. He resigned his board membership and sold his 25% when he became minister of fisheries.

References

1965 births Living people Namibian businesspeople People from Walvis Bay SWAPO politicians Mayors of places in Namibia Fisheries ministers of Namibia Members of the National Assembly (Namibia) {{Africa-business-bio-stub