The government seems to have scaled down its long-standing plans to build an Ondangwa referral hospital, with Oshana governor Hofni Iipinge yesterday announcing the project will instead become a district hospital.
Speaking during his state of the region address at Oshakati, Iipinge said significant progress has been made towards the establishment of a long-awaited Ondangwa district hospital, with key preparations completed.
“Progress was made towards the establishment of the long-awaited Ondangwa district hospital, with the feasibility study completed, environmental assessments finalised and consultants appointed to commence detailed designs,” he said.
The announcement marks a notable departure from earlier government plans for a referral hospital at Ondangwa, a project first proposed nearly two decades ago to provide specialised healthcare services in northern Namibia.
Speaking to The Namibian after his address, Iipinge said the proposed 700-bed hospital would be financed through the African Development Bank (AfDB) in collaboration with the ministries of finance and health and social services.
“The main feasibility study is completed and the socio-economic impact study, which is required by the AfDB as part of the financial assessment, is ongoing and due to be completed by the end of this month,” he said.
“I am championing it myself. The 2017 vision died due to their own conflict. I came with my own vision to make sure national projects that collapsed without being realised are brought to light.
“Already, the environmental impact assessment is completed and submitted to the Ministry of Environment and Tourism for clearance. Consultants to commence with the design specifications have been appointed, after which the long-awaited project will be advertised for construction in phases,” Iipinge said in his address.
The governor said the hospital would play a critical role in strengthening healthcare delivery in northern Namibia and reducing pressure on Oshakati Intermediate Hospital.
“Once completed, the hospital will significantly strengthen healthcare delivery and reduce pressure on Oshakati Intermediate Hospital,” he said.
The Ministry of Health and Social Services would, however, not confirm whether the government has officially changed the project’s status from that of a referral hospital to a district hospital.
Health ministry spokesperson Walters Kamaya declined to comment yesterday.
“The governors are not part of the ministry. So I don’t want to enter the tug-of-war to say you did not tell the truth . . . If a person said this, accountability lies with them,” Kamaya said.
The Ondangwa hospital project was first proposed in 2007 as a referral hospital aimed at relieving pressure on the overburdened Onandjokwe Hospital at Oniipa and expanding access to specialised medical services in the northern regions.
In 2015, the project was estimated to cost N$100 million. Two years later, The Namibian reported that more than N$4 million had already been spent on planning and feasibility studies for the proposed Ondangwa referral hospital.
At the time, government plans envisaged a state-of-the-art 1 000-bed facility equipped with an oncology centre, maternity block and cardiac unit.
According to the 2023 Population and Housing Census, the Oshana, Oshikoto, Omusati and Ohangwena regions have a combined population of more than 986 590 residents, many of whom depend on Oshakati Intermediate Hospital for specialised and referral healthcare services.
Some patients from Angola also seek medical treatment from the facility.
