Taimi Haihambo
ENGELA – The shelter for expectant women at the Engela State Hospital is in a dilapidated state, which could be a serious health hazard to over 100 women who are accommodated there on short terms.
The building, inaugurated 14 years ago by former First Lady Penexupifo Pohamba, is now in a dilapidated state, characterised by broken windows, wafer-thin matrasses, broken beds and foul smell from pools of sewer water from blocked toilets.
Hooked inside the ceiling are wires and palm leaves that are connected to mosquito nets, as the place crawls with mosquitoes and cockroaches.
But to top it off, it is overcrowded.
The facility does not only accommodate expectant mothers but also houses caregivers who have family members and relatives hospitalised in the Engela State Hospital. The people claim that they have nowhere else to lodge while waiting for their loved ones to recover. The majority are Angolan nationals.
Ester Nghifivali, a Namibian mother, said there is no privacy at the shelter, as pregnant women have to dress or bathe in full view of other housemates.
“It is worse during the nighttime, as the shelter’s windows are broken and there are no curtains.
“The mattresses here are very old, and the beds are damaged; we sleep so uncomfortably that one wakes up with severe backache every day.
In fact, some people opt to sleep on the floor because the beds are worse,” said Ester Nghifivali. The shelter has eight rooms, of which each has the capacity to accommodate eight mothers.
However, at the moment, each of the rooms has 12 to 15 women.
Apart from the bedrooms, every spot, including under the kitchen sink, is occupied.
In fact, the kitchen is no longer in use. Some women have set up tents outside the building, where they feel it is more hygienic.
According to the mothers, the sewage system structure that has been broken for years and overflows gets worse during the rainy season. This creates a bad smell all over the place.
“The government should find a method to at least create shelter near the hospital for us, caregivers, since not all of us live in Engela; some of us travel long distances and cannot afford to pay transport every day [to see our loved ones who are hopitalised],” said Keukeinge Shuukifeni, one of the caregivers.
The fee at the facility is N$14 per week. At the moment, there seems to be no entity responsible for the maintenance of the facility, as both the ministry of health and Ohangwena Regional Council keep passing the ball.
The executive director for the Ministry of Health and Social Services Ben Nangombe said shelter is not under the management of his ministry.
He referred this reporter to the regional council.
However, the chief regional officer for Ohangwena, Fillipus Shilongo, said they only facilitated the construction of the shelter that was built with funding from various entities, including the Namibia Institute of Pathology (NIP) and the former governor Uusko Nghaamwa, among others.
A well-placed source, who requested anonymity, however, claimed the ministry of health and the Helao Nafidi Town Council are presently helping to take care of this property by paying its water bills and taking care of a few renovations.