Day: February 27, 2024

Posted on

Two girls die at Livayi of suspected food poisoning

Two girls aged one and seven years have died at Livayi village in the Kavango East Region due to suspected food poisoning, while another six children are receiving medical treatment at the Rundu State Hospital.

The hospitalised children are two two-year-olds, a four-year-old, a five-year-old, a ten-year-old and a 12-year-old, Namibian Police Force (NamPol) acting regional commander, Deputy Commissioner Eino Nambahu told Nampa on Tuesday.

He said the incident happened Monday. It is alleged that the family prepared porridge with traditional spinach known as mutete for lunch. After lunch, one of the elder kids reportedly complained of stomach ache.

For supper which took place at around 17h00, the family prepared porridge with milk.

At around 19h00, seven-year-old Elfriede Nangombe Shinyemba started vomiting, felt weak and died.

Nambahu said police from Ndiyona Constituency, where the incident happened, together with medical personnel from the Nyangana District Hospital departed to the scene and found Shinye
mba deceased, while others were vomiting and in a weak state.

‘The medical personnel started giving first aid to try and stabilise their condition,’ he said.

The seven kids were immediately rushed to the Nyangana District Hospital and later transferred to the Rundu State Hospital. While being transferred to the Rundu State Hospital, the youngest of the seven kids, one-year-old Melania Nahambo Likuwa died.

Nambahu indicated that a team from NamPol and the Ministry of Health and Social Services in the region departed to the homestead of the eight children in Ndiyona to assess the situation.

He said all the necessary samples were collected and will be taken to the laboratory for further investigations.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency

Posted on

More women involvement required in maritime sector: Difeto


Chairperson of the Port Management Association of Eastern and Southern Africa (PMAESA), Phyllis Difeto has acknowledged the need for more involvement by women within the maritime sector.

Difeto, during the PMAESA Annual General Meeting taking place in Swakopmund on Tuesday, said that concerted efforts are required to encourage women in the maritime industry to take up crucial roles.

‘PMAESA’s adopted constitution outlines how to become a member of the organisation and how to participate, among other guidelines. It outlines the strategic objectives and the capacity creation and acquiring women into very critical positions between attempts,’ she said.

‘So in order for this dream to be realised, maritime organisations just need to make sure that they become associated with the mother board to enjoy these benefits while also realising the inclusion of women and bringing them along at meetings of this nature, which in turn bring about capacity development, among others,’ she stressed.

Namibia Ports Authority (
Namport) Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Kanime said ports in SADC are often listed as some of the main bottlenecks to the efficacy of trade flow, together with attendant prohibitive charges, thereby impacting the competitiveness of exports in international markets. Reasons for the bottlenecks, according to Kanime, range from poor management and planning, inadequate regulatory systems, old and insufficient equipment, and deficiencies in support infrastructure.

‘With 16 out of Africa’s 54 states landlocked, the impact of high port costs and competitiveness is even more acute and broader. We must hence jointly consider interventions and mechanisms which will streamline our processes not only in our ports but across the whole logistics value chain and reduce the costs of doing business through our ports and trade corridors so that we play our part towards intra-Africa trade, economic development, and continental integration,’ he said.

PMAESA was founded in 1973 during a forum of Transport Ministers hosted by t
he United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. It provides a platform for stakeholders in the port and maritime transport sector in and around eastern and southern Africa for the exchange of best practices and information on various ports and maritime-related activities in line with its mandate. The organisation consists of 23 member countries.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency