Omusati regional governor Immanuel Shikongo has proposed funding for the construction of access roads to prevent schools and hospitals from closing during the rainy season. 

He said records show that during recent flooding, about 47 schools were closed, with 60 schools being affected due to high water levels.  

Furthermore, over 26 000 learners in the Omusati region were reported to be affected.  

Additionally, every rainy season, residents in many northern regions, including Omusati region, endure unbearable hardship. 

People are often forced to walk or travel long distances on donkey carts through flooded plains just to reach clinics, shops or schools. 

Some people carry children or food supplies across waist-deep water, risking their lives. 

He said, in severe cases, pregnant women give birth at home or on the way to health facilities because ambulances cannot reach them. 

Shikongo stated that many institutions across the region, especially in constituencies like Oshikuku, Okalongo, Ogongo, Elim and Anamulenge, are often forced to close or scale down operations because flooded roads or blocked access prevent students and staff from reaching them. “I have already proposed funding for access roads from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and will continue to do so. We plan to construct at least two access roads per constituency in every financial year,” said the governor. 

He added the region faces a choice between two solutions: a permanent but costly option of building hostels at schools, or constructing access roads. 

Shikongo acknowledged that schools complaining about inadequate access roads are justified.  

“The Okalongo constituency had benefitted from earlier access roads. Only a few schools did not get access roads,” he said. 

Attempts to obtain a comment from Omusati education director Paulus Kashiimbi proved futile, as his phone went unanswered. 

Teachers at Ondeipanda Primary School in the Okalongo Circuit of the Omusati region are among those pleading for a proper access road before the rainy season begins. 

They said they often must swim through flooded rivers to reach the school, a situation they describe as dangerous and discouraging. 

“We really struggle to reach the school during the rainy season, which sometimes forces us to close temporarily. Teachers must leave their cars far away and cross the big river that flows from Angola, while many learners cannot cross at all,” said Onno Hamulungu, the school principal.

He added that the school faces infrastructure issues like overcrowded classrooms and a lack of an administrative building. 

“We don’t have enough classrooms, and learners are packed into small spaces. We also don’t have an administration office – only one room serves as the principal’s office,” he said.

In addition, the school is struggling with infrastructure.

-vkaapanda@nepc.com.na