By Staff Reporter
Nangula Nelulu Uaandja, a Chartered Accountant by profession is the CEO of the newly established Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board. The Board, a Public Entity in the Presidency is tasked with the mandate of promotion and facilitating foreign and domestic investments as well as promotion the development of SMEs.
Until December 2020, Nangula served as a Partner at PwC Namibia, with over 20 years’ experience in auditing and has served as lead partner on audits of organizations across various sectors and industries . She has also been involved in non-audit work such as consulting on various matters, fraud investigation, assisting clients with budgetary processes, the analysis and interpretation of financial statements, presentations on the roles and responsibilities of directors and a host of other relevant topics.
Nangula was named Namibia’s Businesswoman of the year in 2011. Besides playing a role on the Accounting/Auditing Professional Bodies such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Public Accountants and Auditors Board, she also served as a member of the Tax Court Appeal and was appointed as a member of the first Public Office Bearers’ Remuneration and Benefits Committee by the President of the Republic of Namibia from 2006 to 2009.
There are many firsts in Nangula’s life – she was the first black female Namibian to qualify as a Chartered Accountant and the first female and first black Namibian to occupy the position of PwC Managing Partner as well as that of President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Namibia.
Over the years Nangula has grown a burden concerning the triple challenges of unemployment, inequality and poverty that are facing Namibia. It is this burden that led her to pursue further studies as a regstered Doctor in Business Leadership candidate with focus on the collaborative role required between the public and private sectors to drive inclusive economic growth and findicommon solutions to these challenges. Her thesis topic is titled “An integrated Public-Private Collaboration (PPC) Framework to enhance a country’s resources: A Case for Namibia.”
It is also this burden that led to her resignation as the Head of PwC Namibia earlier this year and later accepting the President’s appointment to the role of Chief Executive Officer of the Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board.
Relevant Experience:
- PwC Namibia: Started career at PwC in 1997 where she has served 23 years, of which 18 has been a Partner and 10 years the Managing Partner.
- PwC Africa: Represented the Namibian Firm at the PwC Southern Africa Governing Board for 5 years
- South Market Area Leadership Team: Appointed of by PwC Africa CEO to the 8-team, PwC South Market Area Leadership Team with oversight/regional representation for Namibia, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland and Zimbabwe.
- Vice Chairperson HLPNE: Appointed by the President of the Republic of Namibia in 2019 as an advisor on the High-Level Panel on the Namibian Economy (HLPNE) where she served as the Vice Chairperson.
She already possesses a B.Comm (Cum Laude) from the University of Namibia which she received in 1997, a B.Accounting Honours from UNISA achieved in 1998; and a Masters in Business Leadership (Cum Laude) which she also received from her alma mater, UNISA, in 2018.