Maria Mbudhi
Windhoek,Khomas
Summary
Seasoned professional with extensive expertise in government relations and regulatory compliance, adept at building and sustaining high-level relationships with ministries, regulators, and SOEs. Demonstrated strategic leadership as a senior in-country representative, reporting directly to CEOs and boards, with a strong governance and public affairs background. Proven track record in operational excellence, resolving critical bottlenecks and managing crises to safeguard reputation. Skilled in stakeholder engagement and diplomacy, negotiating with diverse parties to achieve strategic objectives. Experienced in business expansion, workforce development, and embedding compliance culture across operations. Expert in public affairs, communications, and brand elevation strategies that enhance corporate visibility and foster goodwill.
Overview
1
1
Certification
1
1
year of post-secondary education
14
14
years of professional experience
Work history
Founding Director: Business Development
Women in Oil, Gas and Energy Network (WOGEN)
Windhoek, Khomas
2023.02 - Current
- Founding Director (Appointed as Director for the network's Business Development).
- Strategised and advised on how to align the network to be able to secure partnerships with operators and international service companies in Namibia.
- Identifying and spearheading the engagement with potential global collaborators e.g. Women in Energy Network, Nigeria .
- Coordinated global and local industry conferences participation, boosting the Network's exposure in international markets.
- Mentored junior interns to develop their skills and potential as they relate to administrative and marketing strategies.
- Forged new alliances with industry service providers and enterprises, opening avenues for co-marketing. opportunities.
Founder & Executive Chair
Antila Oil and Gas | NLCC
Windhoek, Khomas
2017.10 - Current
- Established and led the Namibia Local Content Conference & Exhibition as a national platform for dialogue, capacity building, and empowerment in the oil and gas sector.
- Positioned the conference as a flagship initiative to promote local participation, skills transfer, and enterprise development in Namibia’s emerging petroleum industry.
- Mobilized government ministries, regulators, international operators, and local enterprises to engage in structured discussions on policy, compliance, and opportunities for Namibians and investors alike.
- Designed and executed programs that advanced local content frameworks, ensuring alignment with national development goals and industry best practices.
- Facilitated partnerships between global service companies and Namibian institutions to strengthen technical capacity and workforce readiness.
- Advocated for inclusive growth by empowering SMEs, women-led enterprises, and local contractors to access opportunities in exploration and production value chains.
- Coordinated high-level stakeholder engagement, securing participation from senior government officials, industry leaders, and international partners.
- Elevated Namibia’s visibility in the global oil and gas arena by hosting international delegations and showcasing local capabilities.
- Delivered impactful outcomes by fostering collaboration between academia, government, and industry to build sustainable skills pipelines
- Maintained a strong brand reputation for the conference as a credible and influential platform for shaping Namibia’s local content agenda.
- In my personal capacity, I advised BakerHughes, SLB, and Halliburton on their market-entry strategies for Namibia, developed strategic alignment frameworks to secure operator engagement and government endorsement, and positioned each company to capture competitive market share the Upstream services sector. (2021-2023)
Deputy Country Manager
Rhino Resources Ltd. B.V. (PEL85)
Windhoek & Lüderitz, Khomas
2022.11 - 2025.04
- First Namibian woman appointed as a Deputy Country Manager in post-independent Namibia.
- Served as senior in-country representative, reporting directly to the CEO, and was unanimously elected to the first Board of the Namibian Petroleum Operators Association (NAMPOA), where I chaired Public Affairs.
- Leveraged my previous network and maintained high-level relationships with the Office of the President, Parliament and Ministries, and the relevant SOEs and government agencies.
- Securing visibility and political goodwill for the company over the entire duration of my tenure.
- Advised and ensured full compliance with Petroleum Agreements, National development policies and industry regulatory frameworks in collaboration with the CEO and Operations & Exploration teams.
- Attended weekly high level technical and operational meetings with CEo and Operational teams.
- Intervened at the NAMPORT board level to resolve permit, visa, and logistics challenges, including securing prime Walvis Bay onshore base access despite initial resistance from port management officials.
- Opened Windhoek offices, recruited and onboarded Namibian staff, embedding HSE protocols, anti-bribery and compliance culture across operations.
- Designed and executed PR, communications, marketing and networking strategies that elevated the company’s profile, enabling exploration campaigns to be delivered on time and within budget.
- Secured the attendance of senior government officials (including Hon. Kornelia Shilunga, the current head of the Upstream Petroleum Unit), NAMCOR executives, and local partners (Korres Investments) to view Searcher’s “Empress” seismic vessel ahead of a multi-client Orange Basin survey.
- Coordinated and attended ESIA public consultation meetings in Windhoek, Lüderitz and Walvis Bay.
- Coordinated and significantly contributed to the inauguration of the Rhino-Halliburton Technology Centre at UNAM’s Southern Campus, advancing local capacity-building where i delivered remarks on behalf of the CEO.
- Facilitated meetings with parliamentary leadership to mitigate potential pushback from traditional authorities of the //Kharas Region (Orange Basin).
- Intervened and resolved subcontractor disputes and regulatory bottlenecks with government, including explosive permits and visa issues, saving the company high costs (equivalent of USD 2 million)
- Managed crises effectively, minimising reputational risks and ensuring operational continuity.
- Raised the company's corporate profile through participation and delivery of remarks at the Namibian Mining Expo 2023 & 2024's official opening ceremonies.
- Represented the company and conducted training at extractive industry workshops with government officials.
- Maintained continuous communication with JOA partners and coordinated TACMs and OCMs to ensure timeous alignment and the execution of commercial agreement commitments within initial budgets.
- Coordinated with the regional head office in Cape Town and subcontractors in Walvis Bay to align strategies, budgets and objectives.
- Encouraged the formation of an in-country database of private sector companies/enterprises in order to be complaint with the local content reporting to MME.
Chair: Public Affairs
Namibia Petroleum Operators Association (NAMPOA)
Windhoek, Khomas
2023.01 - 2024.12
- Advocated for campaigns that ensured the information asymmetry with stakeholders and the Namibian public at large.
- Fostered an atmosphere of respect and collaboration to encourage strategic alignment across the subcommittees' operator resource sharing during the multiple drilling campaigns at the time.
- Alongside the coordinator, secured high-level meetings with senior government officials, resulting in strategic alignment across the board.
- Coordinated with the Chairperson and the coordinator on major decisions to drive organisational success.
- Guided the board in setting long-term goals to ensure company's growth.
- Established corporate governance standards to uphold ethical practices.
- Reviewed financial budgets regularly and maintained fiscal responsibility.
- Built trusted relationships with board members to maintain constructive leadership.
- Facilitated and conducted annual training workshops with Namibian media houses to ensure accurate reporting of the exploration drilling activities in Namibia.
- Represented the organisation's value and mission statements at conventions, seminars and numerous national TV interviews.
- Administered the biggest budget for the Association and funded capacity-building initiatives such as the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) Public Lecture Series focused on Upstream Petroleum operations & technologies.
Country Administrator
Serica Energy PLC (PEL47)
Windhoek, Khomas
2012.04 - 2019.11
- Being the first point of contact with the Namibian government, local partners and relevant industry stakeholders.
- Representing principles at NAMPOA and various industry related networking events.
- Building, fostering and maintaining relationships with other active petroleum exploration license holders and their associate partners.
- Representing the company annually at international Oil & Gas Conferences e.g. Global Pacific's Africa Oil Week in Cape Town.
- Building, fostering and maintaining relations with officials from the Petroleum Directorate (MME), NAMCOR, Petrofund, British Business Group and other relevant ministries.
- Coordination of the Serica energy Basic Oil & Gas Seminar alongside NAMCOR and the Ministry of Mines & Energy.
- Coordinating the SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineers) meetings and seminars in Windhoek.
- Dealing with seminar related media enquiries and press releases.
Coordinator & Treasurer
Namibia Petroleum Operators Association (NAMPOA)
Windhoek, Khomas
2015.01 - 2018.01
- Coordinated quarterly, ad hoc, and AMG meetings for the Chairperson and general membership.
- Streamlined communication between the Chairperson, the members and the regulating authorities and external stakeholders.
- Implemented effective coordination strategies for external stakeholder engagements and improved workflow efficiency by developing internal process improvements.
- Reported on current affairs and news to ensure members not based in the country were kept abreast.
- Represented the Association at Diplomatic Corps engagements, e.g., ministerial-level engagements at the USA and British Business Group quarterly meetings and celebrations, respectively.
- Maintained cordial relationship with Petrofund to coordinate communication with the associations' members as it pertains to nominations on the Petrofund board.
- Liaised with external parties to ensure seamless execution of governmental training workshops and seminaars.
Consulting Country Representative
OMV (Namibia) Exploration Pty. Ltd (PEL46)
Windhoek, Khomas
2014.08 - 2016.11
- Liaising with the Namibian government, industry stakeholders and the British High Commission.
- Representing company at NAMPOA and the British Business Group meetings.
- Building, fostering and maintaining relations with the British High Commission and the Honorary Austrian Consulate.
- Representing principles at International Oil & Gas conferences e.g. the Global Pacific Africa Oil Conference (Cape Town), the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC -Houston), and the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain (PESGB) conference in London.
- Advising on new business opportunities (asset sales, Farm-Ins and Joint Ventures, etc.) within the Southern African region.
- Presenting the status quo of the consulting activities in working meetings as well as in interim presentations.
- Reporting on current affairs affecting principles and industry.
Intern
PVE Consultaning | NVentures
London, UK
2015.09 - 2015.09
- Summer internship to assist with attending the company's exhibition booth industry conference in London.
- Data analytics and sorting
- Sourcing, collating and organising the "on the ground" intelligence of well data and operator timelines at the Mayfair office.
Education
Hon. Bachelor of Economics (NQF 7) - Economics: Student Number: 217016170
Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST)
Windhoek 2026.02 -
Project Management Foundations (Certificate) - Project Management
The University of Cape Town (UCT)
Cape Town 2015.01 - 2015.06
Professional Communication and Office Management - PR and Communications
The University of Cape Town (UCT)
Cape Town 2012.08 - 2012.11
Skills
1 Government Relations and Regulatory Compliance:
Proven ability to build and sustain high-level relationships with ministries, regulators, and SOEs while ensuring strict adherence to Petroleum Agreements and national frameworks
2 Strategic Leadership and Representation:
Experienced in serving as the senior in-country representative, reporting directly to CEOs and boards, with strong governance and public affairs expertise
3 Operational Excellence and Crisis Management:
Skilled in resolving critical operational bottlenecks (permits, visas, logistics) and managing crises to safeguard reputation and maintain continuity
4 Stakeholder Engagement and Diplomacy:
Adept at negotiating and aligning diverse stakeholders, including government officials, traditional authorities, contractors, and JV partners, to achieve strategic objectives
5 Business Expansion and Workforce Development:
Track record of establishing new offices, recruiting and onboarding local staff, and embedding compliance and anti-corruption culture across operations
6 Public Affairs, Communications, and Brand Elevation:
Expertise in devising PR and networking strategies that enhance corporate visibility, foster goodwill, and position the company as a trusted partner in-country
Languages
English
Fluent
Oshiwambo
Native
Portuguese
Intermediate
Oshiherero
Intermediate
Afrikaans
Fluent
French
Beginner
Nama/Damara
Beginner
Rukavango
Beginner
Certification
Global Women In Management (GWIM75)
Washington, DC
11-23 September, 2025
References
References available upon request.
Timeline
Hon. Bachelor of Economics (NQF 7) - Economics: Student Number: 217016170
Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST)
2026.02 -
Founding Director: Business Development
Women in Oil, Gas and Energy Network (WOGEN)
2023.02 - Current
Chair: Public Affairs
Namibia Petroleum Operators Association (NAMPOA)
2023.01 - 2024.12
Deputy Country Manager
Rhino Resources Ltd. B.V. (PEL85)
2022.11 - 2025.04
Founder & Executive Chair
Antila Oil and Gas | NLCC
2017.10 - Current
Intern
PVE Consultaning | NVentures
2015.09 - 2015.09
Coordinator & Treasurer
Namibia Petroleum Operators Association (NAMPOA)
2015.01 - 2018.01
Project Management Foundations (Certificate) - Project Management
The University of Cape Town (UCT)
2015.01 - 2015.06
Consulting Country Representative
OMV (Namibia) Exploration Pty. Ltd (PEL46)
2014.08 - 2016.11
Professional Communication and Office Management - PR and Communications
The University of Cape Town (UCT)
2012.08 - 2012.11
Country Administrator
Serica Energy PLC (PEL47)
2012.04 - 2019.11