A doctor at Nyangana District Hospital in the Kavango East region has called for a healthcare centre and fuel station at the Ndiyona settlement amid rising deaths from suspected food poisoning in the area.
A representative of the Ministry of Health and Social Services at the hospital, Dr Mathias Luemba, says at least 20 people have died from suspected food poisoning at Ndiyona since 2023.
He said this at a recent consultative meeting attended by various regional leaders, including former deputy prime minister John Mutorwa, traditional leaders, constituency councillors, and community members.
The meeting discussed solutions to the growing number of food poisoning cases in the region.
“Between 2023 and 2025, at least 20 people in the Ndiyona constituency died from suspected food poisoning.
Currently, there is no health centre at Ndiyona, and the population continues to grow.
“When someone falls ill, they must travel about 9km to Nyangana. Establishing a healthcare centre at Ndiyona would therefore give the community quicker access to medical assistance,” he said.
Luemba said while a healthcare centre would handle general cases, severe cases could still be referred to the district hospital for advanced care.
He also highlighted the pressing need for an intensive care unit (ICU) at Nyangana District Hospital, saying some patients arrive in critical condition and need to be stabilised before they can be transferred to the Rundu Intermediate Hospital.
An ICU would help save more lives by reducing preventable deaths, he said.
With regards to the need for a fuel station, Luemba said ambulances often face delays in responding to emergencies due to low fuel levels, forcing them to travel to Rundu or Divundu – almost 100km away – to refuel.
“If we had a filling station at or near the district hospital, we could respond much faster to emergencies. By the second day of operations, our ambulances usually run low on fuel,” he said.
In addition, Luemba revealed that most of the hospital’s ambulances are outdated, with some exceeding 300 000km in mileage and experiencing frequent breakdowns.
In response, Mutorwa said he has retired from the government service and is no longer in a position to intervene directly.
He, however, urged current regional leaders to take these concerns seriously and work towards addressing them.
