ABSTRACT
Land is a central issue in Namibian politics and, in order to grasp this, two basic facts about Namibia need to be explained: the first is that about 40 per cent of land in Namibia is commercial, surveyed and fenced land and is overwhelmingly in the hands of a white minority. Second, 45 per cent of the Namibian population lives on about 7 per cent of the territory’s surface, situated mostly in the north of the country. Most land there is not surveyed and fenced and is held by individuals with large residual communal rights.
