Staff Reporter
THE Gcaruhwa Clinic in the Kavango West Region, initially expected to be completed over a decade ago, has been inaugurated following its completed construction last year.
Speaking at the inauguration, the Minister of Health and Social Services, Dr Kalumbi Shangula, explained that the contract for the construction of Gcaruhwa Clinic and staff accommodation was awarded on 6 September 2012 for N$7,056,799.76. He revealed that the construction began on 19 October 2012, with an expected completion date of 17 October 2013.
“However, the contractor failed to complete the work and the contract was terminated on 29 February 2016. The consultants commenced with the documentation of the outstanding works to enable the Ministry to start the re-tendering process. The documentation was completed and a submission requesting to advertise the call for quotation was submitted to the then Tender Board of Namibia. The project could, however, not get off the ground due to the re-prioritisation of all capital projects due to the fiscal consolidation,” Shangula explained.
The health minister further revealed that he then had a meeting with the Gcaruhwa community in 2019 and promised them a clinic. This, he emphasised, was particularly important as the population of Gcaruhwa had significantly increased, giving rise to the need for more services.
“The site was handed over to a new contractor on 23 November 2022. During my second visit here, where we celebrated the Belated 33rd Independence Anniversary together on 31 March 2023, I gave the assurance that the clinic would be completed on schedule. The clinic was completed in October 2023,” Shangula said.
He highlighted that the long-awaited Gcaruhwa Clinic offers several integrated healthcare services, including family and antenatal care (ANC) services such as pre-conception counselling for HIV-positive people planning to conceive safely.
Additionally, the clinic provides post-natal services, family planning, an expanded immunisation programme for infants and young children, growth monitoring, HIV care, TB screening and treatment, malaria testing and treatment, STI screening, and services for managing communicable and non-communicable diseases.
