Members of parliament have called for urgent action against unregulated health training institutions currently reported to be spreading rapidly in Namibia.
Independent Patriots for Change parliamentarian Liliani Brinkman says some of these institutions are not registered with the Health Professions Council of Namibia (HPCNA) and are operating without qualified staff.
“This situation is not only unacceptable, it is a national crisis in the making,” she said on Wednesday while supporting a motion tabled by Popular Democratic Movement parliamentarian Winnie Moongo.
The motion seeks to investigate the state of health training institutions in Namibia, with a specific focus on the rapid mushrooming of such institutions across the country.
She said the loopholes in the responsible authorities must be addressed urgently.
She questioned how institutions are allowed to operate, some for years, without HPCNA registration and oversight from the Ministry of Health and Social Services.
She said there is a failure of health workforce planning.
“We are training more nurses than we can employ without a coordinated national strategy.
We have an oversupply of graduates who are qualified – sometimes even overqualified – yet are sitting at home, unemployed,” she added.
Brinkman said health professionals are not just workers, but caregivers and frontline defenders of life.
They deserve institutions that will train them with dignity, systems that will protect their rights, and a government that values their contribution, she added.
These institutions, she said, should be closed as they are committing criminal acts by misleading the nation.
Minister of education, innovation, youth, sport, arts and culture Sanet Steenkamp said regulating authorities should unite to ensure that only regulated and approved institutions are training healthcare workers.
Minister of defence and veterans affairs Frans Kapofi said these institutions are not mere schools but are business ventures, adding that those flocking to them are mostly attracted by the fees.
However, he said he believes that these fees cannot be higher than those offered at government institutions and other reputable training institutions.
Although regulations are there, Kapofi cited that this institutions use different ways of skinning a cat.
Former Hardap region governor Solomon April said struggling parents are mostly the ones affected as they cannot detect if these institutions are registered or not.
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