Namibia News

Twenty four  (24) health care workers graduated from a 3 month programme on field epidemiology and laboratory training programme with support from WHO and CDC.  The trainees were selected from health districts affected by the ongoing HEP E virus outbreak.  Although the programme cuts across public health emergencies and threats, the trainees are expected to strengthen surveillance on hepatitis E virus and improve daily reporting of cases.  The training was a response to findings of the WHO Rapid Assessment report which highlighted active case search and weekly reporting

Namibia joined the rest of the world in commemorating the World Health Day under the theme ‘universal health coverage: everyone, everywhere’. The protracted Hepatitis E outbreak was the central theme in the speakers’ messages reiterating the urgency to provide water and sanitation services to the urban poor especially those living in informal settlements.

Country Context
Namibia is situated in the south-western part of Africa bordered by Angola in the north, Zambia and Zimbabwe in the northeast, Botswana to the east, South Africa in the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west.  It is the thirty-fourth largest country in the world occupying an area of 824,292 km2 and the least densely populated country second to Mongolia.  Ninety two percent of the land area is defined as hyper-arid, arid or semi-arid. The county is also characterized by a high income inequality with a Gini coefficient of 0.572.

The Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) is currently implementing the WHO/AFRO II larviciding demonstration project in six districts in Omusati, Oshikoto, Ohangwena, Kavango East and West regions where malaria is transmitted.  The project aims to strengthen national capacity for implementing diversified mosquito control measures to contribute towards malaria elimination.

A case of Guinea worm disease (GWD) was confirmed in Angola in June 2018.  The case, an eight-year girl, hails from the Cunene Province in Angola, which borders Ohangwena and Omusati Regions in Namibia.  In response, Angolan authorities, with WHO support, carried out further case searches in three southern provinces of the country, including Cunene. During the exercise, a suspected case was detected who, at the time of her illness, had travelled to Engela in Ohangwena Region for a wedding and was treated at the Engela District Hospital.

The Ministry of Health and Social Services has recommitted itself to ending the Hepatitis E Outbreak which has claimed 41 lives since December 2017. A National Health Emergency Management Committee was activated since confirmation of the outbreak and the Ministry has engaged partners and mobilized resources to respond to the outbreak. Despite these control measures, the disease persists and has now spread to more than 7 of the 14 regions of the country.

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Namibia, Dr Saara Kuungongelwa-Amadhila, launched the National Strategy on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases recently  in Windhoek.  The Strategy aims to reduce the preventable and avoidable burden of morbidity, mortality and disability due to non-communicable diseases in the country.  

Staff members from WHO AFRO’s Communicable Disease Cluster (CDS) undertook a viral hepatitis baseline assessment mission in support of Namibia Ministry of health from 12th to 16th February 2018.

The objectives of the mission were to assess the currently existing policies and practices on hepatitis control in order to facilitate the initiation and scale-up the viral hepatitis response in Namibia.

Every year globally, 180-200 million women become pregnant with 287,000 of these resulting in maternal deaths. More than 99% of maternal deaths occur in developing countries and 56% of these deaths are in Sub-Saharan Africa, affecting women living in rural areas and among poorer communities.  In Namibia the current estimate of maternal mortality ratio is from the World Health Statistics indicating 265/100,000 per live births. These deaths could be avoided if pregnancy and delivery are attended by skilled health workers at all levels of the health care delivery system.

The WHO Country Representative in Namibia, Dr Charles Sagoe-Moses was invited by the Chief Executive Officer of the City of Windhoek to address the City Council and management on the Hepatitis E Outbreak.  The invitation emulated from a consultation between WHO and the City as part of WHO’s advocacy to increase support towards the National Response Plan to contain the Hepatitis E outbreak.