The Namibian Army is the

ground warfare Land warfare or ground warfare is the process of military operations eventuating in combat that takes place predominantly on the battlespace land surface of the Earth, planet. Land warfare is categorized by the use of large numbers of combat p ...

branch of the Namibian Defence Force.

History

Development of

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 ...

's army was the fastest of the three arms of service. The first units of the Army were deployed as early as 1990. The Army was formed when the two former enemies South West African Territorial Force and the

People's Liberation Army of Namibia The People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN) was the military wing of the South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO). It fought against the South African Defence Force (SADF) and South West Africa Territorial Force (SWATF) during the S ...

were inducted after Namibia's independence into the newly created Namibian Defence Force.

Role

The Ministry of Defence has outlined the Army policy as follows:

''"The Army's principal roles will continue to be as already outlined in the defence policy. The Army will strive to maximise its operational effectiveness through the recruitment of the best young men and women who wish to pursue a military career, their effective training and employment. The Army's equipment priorities are improved troop-lift capacity (road and air); engineer, artillery, anti-tank and air defence and communication systems: the aim being to create a secure, integrated, efficient and cost-effective systems."'' ''"The Army will remain a well-disciplined and accountable, professional (all volunteer) force; it will include development of a Reserve; it will continue to train along the lines of other Commonwealth armies; it will train with other Namibian forces (such as the police) to rehearse plans for aid to the civil authorities, civil ministries and civil community; and it will promote a good public image and contribute to the communities in which it is based."''

Organisation

The Army is a hierarchical organisation, with the Army commander exercising overall command. The Army headquarters are located at Grootfontein military base, a former SADF logistics base. The Army has several thousand members. Senior Army officers also dominate staff positions at Defence Headquarters.

Deployments

Local deployments

The Namibian Army had a convoy service on Namibia's Trans Caprivi Highway which runs from

Otavi Otavi is a town with 10,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. Situated 360 km north of Windhoek, it is the district capital of the Otavi electoral constituency. Geography The towns of Otavi, Tsumeb (to the north) and Gr ...

, Grootfontein,

Rundu Rundu is the capital and the largest city of the Kavango-East Region in northern Namibia. It lies on the border with Angola on the banks of the Kavango River, about above sea level. Rundu's population is growing rapidly. The 2001 census counted ...

, Katima Mulilo until Ngoma border post on the

and

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

border. The convoy system ran twice daily between Bagani and Kongola in the then Caprivi region. The convoy system was run from 2000 till 2002.

SADC deployments

Angola (Operation Mandume ya Ndemufayo)
The Namibian Army also deployed troops to help fight UNITA insurgents active in and around the Kavango region. The operation codenamed ''Mandume ya Ndemufayo'' was a response to UNITA attacks on Namibian citizens. The Namibian cross-border pursuit operations were carried out with consent of the Angolan government. At least two soldiers were killed in operation Mandume ya Ndemufayo. In an operation between 30 January 2001 to 14 February 2001 an estimated 19 UNITA rebels were killed while various weaponry such as anti-tank and anti-personnel landmines, and assault rifles ranging from AK-47 and R-1s were recovered. In a joint operation with the Angolan Armed Forces, the Namibian Defence Force in May 2001 helped dislodge UNITA from Mavinga in May 2001. Democratic Republic of the Congo (Operation Atlantic)
The Namibian Army deployed a battle group during the

Second Congo War The Second Congo War, also known as Africa's World War or the Great War of Africa, was a major conflict that began on 2 August 1998, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, just over a year after the First Congo War. The war initially erupted ...

that numbered about 2000 troops and consisted of Infantry,

Artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

Signals A signal is both the process and the result of Signal transmission, transmission of data over some transmission media, media accomplished by embedding some variation. Signals are important in multiple subject fields including signal processin ...

, and

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

Detachments. The first commander of the battle group was Brigadier James Auala. About 30 Namibian Serviceman died in the DRC operations. The Operation was Code named ''Atlantic ''. The SADC coalition force commander was always a Zimbabwean and deputy force commander a Namibian, and the Chief of Staff was an Angolan. 11 Namibian soldiers were held as prisoners of war in

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

, they were released in June 2000. The soldiers were captured in April 1999 in the Lusambo area which is about 120 kilometers east of Mbuji-Mayi. In January 2001 after

Laurent-Désiré Kabila Laurent-Désiré Kabila (; 27 November 1939 – 16 January 2001) usually known as Laurent Kabila or Kabila the Father (American English, US: ), was a Congolese rebel and politician who served as the third president of the Democratic Republic of t ...

's death the Namibian army contingent was reinforced to not only provide security to Heads of States at the funeral but also to reinforce the SADC contingents in

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

and

Lubumbashi Lubumbashi ( , ; former ; former ) is the second-largest Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, located in the country's southeasternmost part, along the border with Zambia. The capital ...

. Namibia was also the first foreign country to withdraw its troops and by September 2001 all Namibian soldiers had been withdrawn. Seven soldiers who have been

missing in action Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty (person), casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoner of war, prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been ...

have since been declared dead. The seven had gone missing around the Deya River close to Kabalo, Deya-Katutu, and

Lusambo Lusambo () is the capital Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, city of Sankuru province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The town lies north of the confluence of the Sankuru River and the Lubi River. Lusambo is served by Lusambo Airp ...

areas. 137 soldiers that had survived the encirclement during the siege of Ikela were presented with commendation medals. The siege at Ikela claimed the lives of 5 Soldiers and many other wounded.

UN deployments

* UNAMIC - The army deployed a company-sized unit to UNAMIC. * United Nations Angola Verification Mission III (UNAVEM III) * MONUA * United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) For the peacekeeping operation in Liberia the Namibian Army contribution was known as Namibian Battalion (NAMBATT) and about 800 infantry troops per NAMBATT contingent were mustered to form a battalion for this operation. Troops were rotated and rotations numbered up to NAMBATT V. A NAMBATT contingent commanding officer stated his unit was to comprise "''two Mot Inf Coys, two rifle companies, headquarters company, and fire support company while the battalion is equipped with 10 Wolf APC's, 12 Casspir APC's and 11 WER Wolf APC's''".

Unit structure

The standard operational units are structured according to the British commonwealth system:

Formations and Units

Air Defence Corps * Air Defence Brigade Artillery Corps * 4 Artillery Brigade **12 Artillery Regiment **44 Artillery Regiment **46 Artillery Regiment **21 Artillery Regimenthttp://www.mod.gov.na/pdfs/oct-dec%202013.pdf **26 Artillery Regiment Infantry Corps * 21 Motorised Infantry Brigade **21 Guard Battalion **211 Battalion **212 Battalion **213 Mechanized Infantry Battalion Based in

Windhoek Windhoek (; ; ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek, which ...

* 12 Motorised Infantry Brigade **124 Battalion **125 Battalion Based at

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 ...

**126 Battalion Based in Gobabis. * 26 Motorised Infantry Brigade **261 Motorized Infantry Battalion Based in

. The commanding officer is Lt Col Liyali Given Numwa who succeeded Lt Col David Diyeve. **262 Motorized Infantry Battalion Based in Katima Mulilo. Previous commanding officers include Erastus Kashopola. **263 Motorized Infantry Battalion Based at Oshakati. The current

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

is Lt Col Wesley Muruko. Previous commanding officers included Erastus Kashopola and Colonel Abed Mukumangeni. Engineer Corps * Engineer Regiment Based in

Logistics Formation * Logistic Support Battalion (Namibia) Provost Corps *Military Police Battalion Recce Formation * Recce Regiment Signals Corps * Signal Regiment Training Corps * Army Battle School (Namibia) Oshivelo Based at the former

Oshivelo Oshivelo is a settlement in northern Namibia. Transport and infrastructure Oshivelo has a clinic that in 2014 was refurbished and named after Catherine Bullen, a woman that died here in 2002 due to inadequate facilities. In early 2005, the n ...

SADF training base, transformed into an army battle school. The commandant of the battle school is Colonel H. Mvula who succeeded Colonel Joel Kapala as-off 6 January 2015, Colonel Kapala succeed Colonel Kashindi Eusebi Kashindi. *Technical Training Centre (TTC) The Army TTC offers training to army soldiers covering ''mechanics and electrical configurations of armaments, military weapons, and equipment'' * Army School of Artillery Based at the Oluno Military Base, the school is responsible for the training requirement of all soldiers specializing to become artillery gunners. Lt Col Ambrosius Kwedhi is the commandant of the School.

Command Structure

Army commander

The position of Army commander is held by a commissioned officer with the rank of major general. The Army Commander exercises the overall command of the Army. The current Army commander is Major General Matheus Alueendo.

Senior Appointments

Army equipment

Small arms

Anti-tank weapons

Vehicles

Vehicles of the Namibian Army are made up of a variety of suppliers including those from the former

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

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 ...

. Some vehicles were donated by SWAPO, formerly a liberation movement which later became the ruling party of the country at independence, and SWATF, the security force of the then South West Africa administration. The army has received WZ523 Infantry Fighting Vehicles from China which serve with

mechanized infantry Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with Armoured personnel carrier, armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also armoured corps). As defined by the United States Army, me ...

units. These vehicles are supplemented by the Namibian made Wolf series of

MRAP Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle (MRAPV), also known as MRAP vehicle, is a type of armoured personnel carrier that is designed specifically to withstand land mines, improvised explosive device (IED) attacks, and ambushes to save troops' li ...

s. South African made Casspirs are also in service which were inherited from the South-West Africa Territorial Force. To enhance mobility it was announced that the Army will receive the Agrale Marruá which appeared at the 25th Independence celebration parade in 2015.

Tanks

Scout cars

Armored personnel carriers

Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected

Utility vehicles

Artillery

is also dominated by Soviet/Russian and Chinese weapons. They have been supplemented by 24 G2 artillery donated by South Africa.

Anti aircraft weapons

Air defence equipment of the Army is also made up of Russian and Chinese weaponry.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Special Forces

The Army

commando A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines. Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as oppo ...

s and airborne

paratrooper A paratrooper or military parachutist is a soldier trained to conduct military operations by parachuting directly into an area of operations, usually as part of a large airborne forces unit. Traditionally paratroopers fight only as light infa ...

s are part of the Namibian Special Forces.

Ranks and insignia

Army ranks are based on Commonwealth ranks. The highest rank in peace time a commissioned officer can attain in the army is major general. There may, however, be an exception when an army officer is appointed as Chief of the Defence Force, for which the individual will ascend to the lieutenant general. The highest rank an enlisted member can attain is warrant officer class 1.

Commissioned officer ranks

The rank insignia of

commissioned officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent ...

Other ranks