The Ministry of Health and Social Services on Wednesday launched a transformational initiative to overcome persistent challenges within the health sector, by April 2026.
‘Vision April 2026’ was announced here by Health Minister, Dr Esperance Luvindao during the National Health Facility Assessment feedback meeting.
Luvindao stated that during 08 and 15 September this year, the ministry embarked on a detailed facility assessment to evaluate health facilities across all 14 regions and create solutions to the challenges that result.
Luvindao indicated that the findings of the facility assessment report indicated the urgent need to tackle ground problems such as
“weak infection prevention control, non-operational or inadequate medical equipment, staffing shortfalls in critical services across the board, and the inconsistent supply of pharmaceuticals and stock management”.
The minister further indicated that Vision April 2026 will serve as a turning point to diverging resources towards strengthening public health delivery, investing in critical success factors such as human resources, infrastructure, medical equipment and digital systems and innovation.
“Vision April 2026 is a decisive turning point, a first step in taking greater accountability for taxpayers’ money, and a strategic redirection of resources to strengthen our public health system in a prioritised manner,” Luvindao added.
In addition, the minister touched on the need to renovate public health infrastructure, because the majority of the public health facilities are not yet ready to absorb PSEMAS patients. She assured that before April 2026, the ministry will enhance public services by expanding their scope, upgrading their quality to meet required standards, and building internal capacity to lessen the need for outsourcing.
Luvindao concluded that this initiative will accelerate Namibia’s journey towards Universal Health Coverage, ensuring that every citizen has equal access to quality healthcare, which is funded fairly and sustainably. -Nampa
Photo: Heather Erdmann