Birth Registration: The constitution provides for citizenship by birth within the country to a citizen parent or a foreign parent ordinarily resident in the country, or to those born outside the country to citizen parents.
The Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration, in partnership with UNICEF, provided birth certificates for newborns at clinics and hospitals throughout the country, including through mobile registration vans and birth registration offices at 11 high-volume hospitals. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration, approximately 98 percent of citizens had a birth certificate or other identifying document. For additional information, see Appendix C.
Child Abuse: Child abuse was a serious problem, and authorities prosecuted reported crimes against children, particularly rape and incest. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare employed social workers throughout the country to address cases of child abuse and conducted public awareness campaigns aimed at preventing child abuse and publicizing services available to victims.
Early and Forced Marriage: The law prohibits civil marriage before age 18 for both boys and girls. For additional information, see Appendix C.
Sexual Exploitation of Children: The law criminalizes child pornography, child prostitution, and the actions of both the client and the pimp in cases of sexual exploitation of children under age 18. NGOs reported that HIV/AIDS orphans and other vulnerable children engaged in prostitution without third-party involvement due to economic pressures or as a means of survival.
The government enforced the law; perpetrators were routinely charged and prosecuted. The penalties for conviction of soliciting a child under age 16 for sex, or more generally for commercial sexual exploitation of a child (including through pornography), is a fine of up to N$40,000 ($3,030), up to 10 years’ imprisonment, or both. Penalties for conviction in cases involving children ages 16 and 17 are the same as for adults. The law makes special provisions to protect vulnerable witnesses, including individuals under age 18 or against whom a sexual offense has been committed.
An adult convicted of engaging in sexual relations with a child in prostitution under age 16 may be imprisoned for up to 15 years for a first offense and up to 45 years for a repeat offense. Any person who aids and abets trafficking in persons--including child prostitution--within the country or across the border is liable to a fine of up to one million Namibian dollars ($75,600) or imprisonment for up to 50 years. Conviction of solicitation of a prostitute, living off the earnings of prostitution, or keeping a brothel carries penalties of N$40,000 ($3,030), 10 years’ imprisonment, or both.
The minimum legal age for consensual sex is 16. The penalty for conviction of statutory rape--sex with a child under age 14 when the perpetrator is more than three years older than the victim--is a minimum of 15 years in prison when the victim is under 13 and a minimum of five years when the victim is 13. There is no minimum penalty for conviction of sexual relations with a child between ages 14 and 16. Possession of or trade in child pornography is illegal. The government trained police officers in handling of child sex abuse cases. Centers for abused women and children worked to reduce the trauma suffered by abused children.
Infanticide or Infanticide of Children with Disabilities: Media reported cases in which parents, usually young mothers, abandoned newborns, sometimes leading to the newborn’s death. The government enforced prohibitions against this practice by investigating and prosecuting violators.
International Child Abductions: The country is not a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child abduction. See the Department of State’s Annual Report on International Parental Child Abduction at travel.state.gov/content/childabduction/en/legal/compliance.html.