Maternity waiting home at Okongo

First Lady Madame Penehupifo Pohamba last week officially broke ground for the construction of the Maternity Waiting Home in the Okongo District of the Ohangwena Region.
The Maternity Waiting Home is a state of the art building which will accommodate up to 80 pregnant women.

These women come from remote and rural areas where access to health services and transportation is difficult during emergency situations. The availability of this facility will alleviate the suffering that pregnant women endure during the erection of their own make-shift tents to stay closer to health facilities to avoid a crisis during pregnancy, child birth and postpartum period. The waiting home will cost just over N$1.9 million and is expected to be completed by August this year. The construction of the Maternity Waiting Home is part of the Programmne for Accelerating the Reduction of Maternal and Child Mortality, a joint partnership between the Ministry of Health and Social Services, the European Union and the World Health Organization. The programme was launched in February 2013 with a total budget of Euro10 million for the period 2013-2016. The Regional Council and Okongo constituency made the land available and will take care of the day-to-day operation of the facility. The health ministry will provide health information and services for the pregnant women and their newborns.