Namibian President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has appointed Kornelia Shilunga and Carlo Lord Muhamed McLeod as special advisors to lead a newly established upstream petroleum unit within the Presidency.
The appointments, which take immediate effect, are aimed at enhancing the governance and strategic oversight of Namibia’s rapidly evolving petroleum sector.
Shilunga, a former Deputy Minister of Mines and Energy and long-serving member of the National Assembly, will serve as Head of the Upstream Petroleum Unit. McLeod, who recently held the role of Deputy General Manager at Chevron Namibia and previously served as Deputy Director at the Directorate of Petroleum Affairs from 2015 to 2023, has been appointed Deputy Head of the Unit.
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The newly created unit will function as a dedicated structure within the Presidency, tasked with reviewing Namibia’s existing petroleum regulatory framework and proposing policy reforms to improve the management of upstream resources. Its mandate includes ensuring regulatory efficiency, transparency, and the maximisation of national benefits from hydrocarbon exploration and production.
President Nandi-Ndaitwah expressed confidence in the advisors’ experience and leadership, citing their technical backgrounds and policy insight as critical assets in steering Namibia’s upstream sector through a pivotal period of growth. The appointments signal the administration’s commitment to good governance, strategic oversight, and institutional capacity-building in anticipation of heightened petroleum activity in the country, particularly following major offshore discoveries in the Orange Basin.
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The President also extended her best wishes to the new advisors, underscoring the national importance of ensuring effective management of natural resources for long-term economic development.
