For much of the 20th century, Namibia fought to escape colonial control. In 1904, German troops massacred around 80,000 native Namibians, including up to 70 percent of the Herero population. In 1915 Namibia was given to South Africa, who refused to recognise the country and called it South West Africa, despite the occupation later being declared illegal.

From the 1950s onward, South Africa's apartheid government separated Namibia's white, coloured and black populations with the creation of townships outside the main cities, including Windhoek's Katutura - meaning "the place we don't want to stay". Ethnic groups were further separated within these townships, reinforcing the divide and rule policies of apartheid.

Namibia was finally granted independence in 1990, and although full integration remains a long way off, the country has achieved a remarkably peaceful transition to democracy, with fair elections and land reforms.