Unlike, say, Robert Mugabe, Mr Nujoma fears no prosecution if he retires.

ECONOMIST: Namibia

Mr Nujoma all but dared his neighbours to follow suit.

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On the dais, Mr Kabila received the presidents who will, at least in the short term, be his masters: Sam Nujoma of Namibia, Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and, especially, Eduardo dos Santos of Angola.

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It's the most sparsely populated country on the planet, with the exception of Mongolia, accents and cultural differences can make responses difficult to decipher, and everything's going to be on the corner of Sam Nujoma and Sam Nujoma anyway.

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And Mr Nujoma is strikingly popular.

ECONOMIST: Namibia