Early in 2010, after Nambia’s ruling party, the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), had gained a decisive victory in the November 2009 election, nine opposition parties disputed the process in the High Court. After that court dismissed the case on a technicality, the opposition parties appealed to the Supreme Court, which in September reversed the ruling on the technicality in question and referred the case back to the High Court. Few, however, expected that the election results would be overturned. On March 21, 2010, the 20th anniversary of Nambia’s independence, Pres. Hifikepunye Pohamba made cabinet changes. Principal among them was the appointment of Utoni Nujoma, the eldest son of the country’s founding president, Sam Nujoma, as minister of foreign affairs, positioning him to succeed Pohamba as president in 2014.
Despite ranking in the upper-middle tier of countries in terms of per capita income, Namibia remained one of the world’s least-equitable societies. Women had a lower life expectancy in 2010 than at the time of independence, largely because of the prevalence of HIV/AIDS. While the Anti-Corruption Commission failed to effectively tackle the many financial scandals that had come to light, more than 100 men remained imprisoned for their alleged involvement in the failed secession of the Caprivi region in 1999. In August 2010 Namibia began chairing the Southern African Development Community (SADC), whose summit in Windhoek again failed to respond decisively to the crisis in Zimbabwe. Although Namibia’s economy shrank in 2008–09 because of the global recession and receipts from the Southern African Customs Union fell significantly, increased diamond and uranium production in 2010 promised a new era of economic growth in the country. Nevertheless, because increases in food prices threatened to lead to malnutrition in certain rural areas, the cabinet in August approved food distribution to those in need.