Career Biography

Ms. Jessica Gawachab has had a significant impact on the disability movement in Namibia. Ms. Gawachab has actively pursued projects that advance human rights in Namibia and has directly impacted and improved the lives of persons with disabilities. She has shown integrity even in the face of opposition and corruption in her career. She continues to build capacity for the lives of persons with disabilities in Namibia.

She has shown that to change the world one must start at home and has ensured that the perfect work and parent balance exists by prioritising the well-being of her family without compromising the quality of her work. She is the mother of two children.

She is responsible for the eradication of corruption while at her current employer, despite threats and opposition. She is the manager of a project that launched the first legal academic publication on disability frameworks in Namibia. She also successfully defended the amendment of the National Policy on Disability, which was over 28 years old. Ms. Gawachab was responsible for leading and defending the submissions to Cabinet, ensuring the adoption of the policy as the Project Manager for the Disability Legislative Review Project.

She is currently pursuing the promulgation of the Persons with Disabilities Bill in Namibia. Due to her interventions, there has been great improvement in the lives of people with disabilities. She also contributes to the training of people with disabilities in order to empower, as well as providing legal advice to ensure their protection.

In purport of combatting corruption, she ensures the efficient and effective governance of the organisation and avoids the exploitation of persons with disabilities. She advises students that need help with funding, matters of discrimination in employment, and other areas that require the protection of persons with disabilities.

Ms. Gawachab received the award of Best communicator in 2024 from her employer. For her efforts in the publication of the Revised National Policy on Disability 2025 in the Government Gazette, she was awarded Employee of the year by her employer in December 2025.

She stands out because of her humility; she treats everyone the same, despite their financial and social class. She is deemed the voice of the voiceless and vulnerable and has set a new criteria and quality level for matters of human rights as not a charity matter, but an entitlement and duty to be respected by the State.

Ms. Gawachab holds a LL.B degree from the University of the Western Cape and a plethora of certifications from the University of Cape Town and Namibia University of Science and Technology. She is admitted as a legal practitioner to the High Court of Namibia and a member of the Law Society of Namibia.