HEALTH CARE

Namibia has a dual healthcare system. Public healthcare provided by the Ministry of Health and Social Services is used by around 85% of the country’s population and the ministry received about 22% of the social sector budget for the 2024/25 financial year. Private health facilities are used by only about 15% of the country’s population.

The Ministry of Health and Social Services will receive N$10.9 billion for operational expenditure and N$457 million for development expenditure during the 2024/25 financial year. The budget for development expenditure has been earmarked for, amongst others, the upgrading and renovation of 12 hospitals and primary healthcare clinics countrywide and the repair and maintenance of the ministry’s health infrastructure. The ministry will receive N$34.3 billion over the 2024/25 to 2026/27 medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF).

In his 2024/25 budget motivation speech, Health Minister Dr Kalumbi Shangula pointed out that the ministry has increased the number of intensive care unit (ICU) beds from less than 40 in public health facilities before the Covid-19 pandemic to 97 beds. He also stated that the ministry is spending more than N$100 million a year on referring state patients to private facilities for renal dialysis care. To address the situation, the ministry is establishing and expanding renal dialysis units in public hospitals throughout the country. The minister said another major achievement during the previous financial year was the procurement and installation of an oxygen generating system at eight hospitals.

Health facilities resorting under the ministry include the Windhoek Central Hospital (the national referral hospital), four intermediate hospitals (the Katutura, Rundu, Oshakati and Onandjokwe hospitals), 34 district hospitals, 56 health centres, 322 clinics and 1,150 outreach centres.

The groundbreaking ceremony of the N$2.9-billion Windhoek District Hospital in the city’s Havana informal settlement took place in May 2024. An amount of N$30 million has been made available for the feasibility studies, design, groundworks and construction during the 2024/25 financial year. N$131 million has been budgeted for 2025/26 and N$170,000 for 2026/27. The 500-bed hospital, which will offer in-patient and out- patient care and will also have a pharmacy and radiology department, is scheduled for completion in 2027. However, plans to build district hospitals at Ondangwa in the Oshana Region and Nkurenkuru in the Kavango West Region, as well as a N$720 million regional hospital at Otjiwarongo, have not yet materialised.

WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION AWARDS

Namibia received two awards from the director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in February 2024. These are the Silver Tier for achieving the path to elimination (PTE) of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of the hepatitis B virus, and the Bronze Tier for achieving the PTE of MTCT of HIV, with 98.5% of infants born to HIV-positive mothers being HIV-free. A comprehensive programme for the prevention of MTCT was launched by the health ministry in 2002.

MALARIA SURGE

Namibia has recorded an increase in malaria cases in ten regions with 6,147 cases recorded between January and March 2024. The number of admissions increased from 287 in 2023 to 630 in 2024, while the number of deaths increased from six in 2023 to 15 this year.

Although malaria infections occur during the rainy season, the drastic increase has been attributed to, amongst others, favourable climatic conditions for the malaria vector – the female Anopheles mosquito.

To reduce the transmission of malaria, the ministry sprays the inside of homes with insecticides and use safe and effective chemicals targeting the larval stage of the mosquitoes. Mosquito nets distributed by the ministry are treated with a safe and effective chemical that repels and kills mosquitoes on contact.

Minister Shangula said in April 2024 that the ministry would need N$1.8 billion to execute the National Malaria Elimination Strategic Plan for 2023 to 2027.

GLOBAL FUND

The Global Fund, a public-private partnership, has approved a three-year grant cycle (2024 to 2026) of US$34 million (N$619 million) for Namibia. The grant will be used to achieve a 75% reduction in HIV infections by 2027, boost TB case detection to reduce the notification gap by 50% in 2027, optimise malaria interventions to achieve elimination goals and strengthen the country’s health system. The fund has assisted the country’s health sector by more than US$391 million (N$7.1 billion) since 2004.

PRIVATE MEDICAL CARE

The private health sector provides services to about 15% of the population in the middle- to high-income population, those who can afford to pay out of pocket, as well as public servants and their families who are members of the Public Service Employees’ Medical Aid Scheme (PSEMAS).

Membership of the eight open medical aid funds stood at just over 100,000 principal members, 115,000 dependants and 13,700 pensioners. PSEMAS, which provides medical insurance to over 250,000 main members and their dependants and pensioners, received N$3 billion in the 2024/25 financial year. The scheme’s administrator, Methealth Namibia Administrators, has made several recommendations to reform the scheme which has been plagued by abuse, fraud, waste, mismanagement and false claims by some practitioners.

The Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (NAMFISA) is charged with, amongst others, the registration of medical aid fund rules and monitoring their financial soundness. The Namibian Association of Medical Aid Funds (NAMAF) is a statutory body established in terms of the Medical Aid Funds Act (No. 23 of 1995) to control, promote, encourage and coordinate the establishment, development and functioning of medical aid funds in Namibia. There are currently seven medical aid funds registered with NAMAF.

The sector provides the full range of world-class services at over 800 private healthcare facilities countrywide. There are five private hospitals in Windhoek, while most of the larger towns throughout the country are served by well-equipped private hospitals and clinics.

All private healthcare facilities where patients receive treatment or other health services are required to be registered and licensed in terms of the Hospitals and Health Facilities Act (No. 36 of 1994).

HEALTH PROFESSIONALS TRAINING

Training of health professionals in various fields is provided by various tertiary institutions, as well as the University of Namibia’s School of Medicine, which was established in 2009 and where the first Namibian-trained medical doctors graduated in 2016. Training is also provided in nursing and public health, allied health services, dentistry and pharmacy.

The Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) offers undergraduate programmes in medical laboratory sciences and emergency medical care, while the International University of Management also offers several health-related programmes.

The National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) granted the Welwitchia Health Training Centre full university status in June 2024. Established in 2013, the training centre offers programmes in nursing science, enrolled nursing and midwifery, health sciences and pharmacy.

VITAL CONTACTS