Oniipa is a town in the Oshikoto Region of northern Namibia and the district capital of the Oniipa electoral constituency. It lies just outside Ondangwa.

History

Oniipa was established in 1872 by the Finnish Missionary Society. In 2014 it became part of the settlement area combined with the nearby village of Onethindi. It was designated as a town in 2015.

The old church hospital, the Onandjokwe Lutheran Hospital, which was named after the first female nurse, is situated in Oniipa. Today, the hospital is managed by the Government of Namibia.

During the struggle and war for independence of the country, a printing shop was burnt down by the Boers.

Politics

Oniipa is governed by a town council that has seven seats.

Oshikoto Region, to which Oniipa belongs, is a stronghold of Namibia's ruling SWAPO party. For the 2015 local authority election no opposition party nominated a candidate, and SWAPO won uncontested. SWAPO only narrowly won the 2020 local authority election. It obtained 733 votes and gained four seats. The Independent Patriots for Change (IPC), an opposition party formed in August 2020, obtained 673 votes and gained three seats.

Notable people

It is the hometown of former Lutheran bishop and liberation leader Leonard Auala.

See also

• Oniipa Training School