A doctor of law at 28

Gabby Tjiroze Ndatega Victoria Asheela received her Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Pretoria in April. At the age of 28 she is probably the youngest PHD holder in the country. She said her academic record speaks volumes of her drive. “My strengths lie in the ability to face challenges and work under pressure. I am committed to achieving all the tasks presented to me in any area of duty. “My parents are the greatest object of my love and adoration. They have sacrificed a lot for me to be where I am today. To do the unthinkable, my son is my source of inspiration,” she said. She obtained her LLB (Honours) in 2012 and thereafter, enrolled for a Master of Laws (Mercantile Law) degree at the University of Pretoria. After she obtained her LLM in 2013, she then enrolled for her Doctor of Laws degree in 2014, which she completed last year.Asheela is also the youngest head of department (HoD) at University of Namibia (Unam). She is head of the Commercial Law department in the Faculty of Law. She joined Unam in February 2013 as a part-time lecturer and was permanently appointed in August of the same year as a lecturer in the Commercial Law department. In September 2017, she was appointed as HoD of the department. Born and bred in the Oshikoto Region, Asheela attended primary school at Onyuulaye Combined School and completed her matric at Ekulo Secondary School. After finishing high school, she had no idea what she wanted to become. “At first I did not know what I was going to study. My mother brought me a book from their school library on career guidance. I must admit that this book confused me more, because there were too many career paths one could follow.“At first I considered studying to become a medical doctor. The way the book described the legal profession and the role of legal practitioners also appealed to me. I then indicated law as my second choice. A few months later, Unam wrote to me indicating that I had not secured a place to do the pre-medicine programme and had forwarded my application for consideration for my second choice at the Law Faculty and that is how I ended up doing law,” she said.Asheela continues to thrive, although her profession is somewhat male-dominated. She shares her experiences, challenges and how she is breaking down this and other barriers. “The legal profession is generally perceived as male-dominated. However, the reality in Namibia is very different as in both practice and academia there are many upcoming young and talented ladies making their mark. It is true when I joined the Law Faculty in 2013, it at first felt like a male-dominated sphere because there were only three ladies at a time. I accepted this challenge and this is what motivated me to work hard towards attaining my doctoral degree,” said an inspirational Asheela.She further pleaded with the Law Reform and Development Commission look at Namibia’s statute books, which are old and obsolete.“The major legal challenge in Namibia of concern is that most statutes on the Namibia statute books are old, redundant and obsolete and are therefore in need of revision. I know that the lawmaking process is slow. However, the pace at which legal reforms in Namibia are being carried out is too slow. I have recommended in my doctoral research that the legislative and regulatory structure of the credit industry be updated, in order to protect consumers,” Asheela added.

A doctor of law at 28

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Namibian Sun 2026-01-23

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A doctor of law at 28

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Namibian Sun 2026-01-23

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