Kavango West gets isolation facility
Despite ground being broken in 2014, the Nkurenkuru primary healthcare facility remains unfinished.
28 October 2020 | Health
Government has constructed a 12-bed prefabricated structure at Nkurenkuru in the Kavango West Region, which will be used as an isolation facility for Covid-19 patients.
The region has been without an isolation facility since the country's first case in March, which meant patients had to be transported to Rundu in Kavango East to be isolated.
However, this is now a thing of the past.
According to Kavango West Regional Council spokesperson, Salomo Tenga, the facility was handed over this month by the contractor and is ready for use.
White elephant
Tenga said the region continues to experience challenges in terms of health infrastructure, while the prefabricated facility was necessitated by the slow progress on the Nkurenkuru primary healthcare facility. Stakeholders agreed that while they await the completion of the facility at Nkurenkuru, which was expected to be completed over five years ago, the prefabricated facility was to be constructed. While former president Hifikepunye Pohamba did the ground-breaking for the construction in 2014, the project has become a white elephant.
Slow going
In July, Namibian Sun reported that new contractors had been appointed to complete outstanding work on the clinic. At the time, Kavango regions chief medical officer, Dr Abiola Adesina, said progress had been made to terminate the initial contractor's contract and that new contractors had been appointed.
When Ewi lyaNooli recently visited the site, no work was underway.
The region has been without an isolation facility since the country's first case in March, which meant patients had to be transported to Rundu in Kavango East to be isolated.
However, this is now a thing of the past.
According to Kavango West Regional Council spokesperson, Salomo Tenga, the facility was handed over this month by the contractor and is ready for use.
White elephant
Tenga said the region continues to experience challenges in terms of health infrastructure, while the prefabricated facility was necessitated by the slow progress on the Nkurenkuru primary healthcare facility. Stakeholders agreed that while they await the completion of the facility at Nkurenkuru, which was expected to be completed over five years ago, the prefabricated facility was to be constructed. While former president Hifikepunye Pohamba did the ground-breaking for the construction in 2014, the project has become a white elephant.
Slow going
In July, Namibian Sun reported that new contractors had been appointed to complete outstanding work on the clinic. At the time, Kavango regions chief medical officer, Dr Abiola Adesina, said progress had been made to terminate the initial contractor's contract and that new contractors had been appointed.
When Ewi lyaNooli recently visited the site, no work was underway.
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