The Meaning of the Namibia Flag

The national flag of Namibia is composed of the colours of the Southwest Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO), which was the primary organisation fighting for the independence of Namibia. These colours, red, blue and green run diagonally across the flag, with thin white stripes separating each of the colours. The left triangle is blue and contains a 12-ray sun, which is said to represent life and energy. The blue is symbolistic of the ocean and the sky. The green which makes up the right triangle is representative of the agricultural wealth of Namibia and the central red stripe symbolizes the people’s heroism and determination. The white incorporates the principles of unity and peace. This was first recognised as the national flag of Namibia on the 21^st of March 1990.

The nation of Namibia is about 824,290km² in size and is located in the southwestern region of Africa. To the north of Namibia is the nation of Angola and to the northeast Zambia. Botswana borders Namibia to the east and South Africa shares a border with Namibia to the south. The western coast of Namibia is lined by the Atlantic Ocean. The capital city Windhoek is located roughly in the centre of Namibia and is home to around 500,000 of Namibia’s population of approximately 3 million people. Most of the population speaks Oshiwambo, Afrikaans or German. However, the official language of Namibia is English. Namibia is home to the Namib Desert, which is between 55 and 80 million years old, making it the world’s oldest desert. Although this harsh climate and landscape makes it extremely difficult for wildlife to survive, many species have developed adaptations to survive the Namib Desert as well as other regions of Namibia, including the Gemsbok, Cheetahs and the African Elephant. The Namibian government considered the protection and conservation of these species and the natural environment extremely important, being one of the first countries to include this in their constitution. The famous Skeleton Coast is found along Namibia’s coastline, it is this stretch of coast that has claimed a large number of ships, with shipwrecks, seals and its thick fog its most notable features.