Staff Reporter
THE fact that Namibia ranks number one in Africa with respect to suicide rates is a national tragedy that we cannot ignore, said Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare on the occasion of the commemoration of World Mental Health Day and Suicide Prevention Month in Windhoek recently.
Ngurare revealed sobering suicide figures, citing the statistics of the Ministry of Health and Social Services.
A total of 3,374 people have committed suicide in Namibia during the past seven years.
Ngurare said that although the numbers have fluctuated, they remained unacceptably high, with 467 suicide cases registered in 2017/18 and 452 cases in 2018/19.
For the years 2019/20 and 2020/21, the number of cases was 441 and 451 respectively. However, the highest number of 564 cases was recorded in 2021/22.
The figures for 2022/23 stand at 457 cases, compared to 542 for 2023/24.
“These numbers are not just statistics,” said Ngurare. “Each figure represents a son, a daughter, a mother, a father — a life full of potential cut short.”
He said that the figures on attempted suicides are equally alarming, namely: 1,665 attempts in 2018/19; 1,369 attempts during 2019/20; 1,619 attempts in 2020/21; 1,772 attempts during 2021/22; 2,322 attempts during 2022/23; and a whopping 2,937 attempts during 2023/24.
Said Ngurare: “Behind every attempt lies a person battling unbearable pain, and each attempt represents an opportunity for us as a nation to intervene, to offer hope, and to save a life.”
PICTURED: Prime Minister Dr. Tjitunga Elijah Ngurare. OPM Namibia
