MPORA – The Mpora Primary Health Care Clinic that caters to a large number of patients in Kavango West has been without running water since beginning of November last year, posing a health hazard not only to the staff but to patients as well.
The staff and patients currently use nearby bushes to relieve themselves.
The clinic is situated in Kavango West at Mpora village, some 75 km towards Grootfontein from Rundu.
The lack of water at the clinic is being attributed to the clinic’s borehole having broken down in November last year. The ministry of works has not fixed the boreholes to date, New Era learnt.
It is said that the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS)’s regional office in Rundu is aware of the situation. The clinic’s staff have made several follow-ups with the regional office, which supplies them with a water tanker but this has not been sustainable as water regularly runs out. It takes days before water is delivered again, a situation compounded by challenges regarding transport.
“We have given the report to the ministry of works in order for them to fix it. We were informed that the damage to the borehole was caused by lightning in November. We expected the department of works to attend to our clinic’s borehole as we cannot operate a clinic without water. It’s a health hazard to both nurses and patients. I will follow up with our district staff to see how far is that problem from getting fixed,” said Timeya Ngwira, the regional director at MoHSS in the two Kavango regions.
Gosbert Sikoka, the control works inspector in the ministry of works who although said they assist with maintenance in Kavango West, professed ignorance about Mpora being without water.
“I don’t know how it was reported so I cannot confirm anything, they must follow up in the channel how it was reported. It might have been reported through their regional office and later their regional office will channel the report to the department of works and it sometimes takes long,” he said.