2018-06-19Staff Report 2 Staff Reporter WINDHOEK - Two universities in Zambia have been banned from offering courses in medicine, pharmacy and radiography for which 91 Namibian students are enrolled in the copper-producing country. The ban was enforced because of various breaches such as inadequate lecturers and the lack of proper laboratories. According to a press statement issued by the acting PS in the Ministry of Health and Social Services, Petronella Masabane, the ministry was alerted of the ban by the Namibian High Commission in Zambia. As such, the ministry will be sending a delegation to Zambia led by Masabane. The delegation will comprise of representatives from the Health Professions Council of Namibia and the University of Namibia’s School of Medicine to assess the situation and “take appropriate action”. The Lusaka Times reported last week that the Health Professions Council of Zambia withdrew the approval certificates for some health-related programmes, which are approved and recognised by the Council, being offered at Lusaka Apex Medical University in Lusaka and Cavendish University, both of them private institutions. The withdrawal follows serious violations uncovered at the last monitoring compliance, which was conducted on October 17, 2017, after which HPCZ wrote to the affected institutions to address the violations, but the last inspection conducted on May 21, 2018, still revealed serious violations than those discovered earlier. “The ministry would like to assure the parents and the public at large, that the ministry will not allow this adverse situation to negatively impact the performance of the students and the human resources development programme of the ministry,” said Masabane, adding that the nation would be informed of the mission’s outcome. 2018-06-19Staff Report 2
