Malnutrition kills 35 Erongo children

Thirty-five children under the age of five died after being admitted to hospital for malnutrition in the Erongo region between January 2024 and July 2026.The figures were presented to the Erongo Regional Council in Swakopmund on Thursday by Tuyenikelao Mwashekele, chief health programme officer in the family health division of the Erongo Directorate of Health.According to the presentation, 192 children were admitted in 2024, of whom 18 died. In 2025, 163 were admitted and 10 died. From January to July this year, 95 have been admitted and seven have died."Those are seriously not good figures," Mwashekele said. "As much as Erongo with all the mines, big oceans, beautiful farms, we shouldn't be losing a child from malnutrition, because this could be our next councillors, our doctors and so on."Health facilities in the region diagnosed 939 children under five with malnutrition in 2024 and 1 126 in 2025. A further 418 have been diagnosed from January to July this year.A 2024 national survey placed chronic malnutrition, or stunting, in Erongo at 26.6%, a rate the World Health Organisation classifies as high. Wasting stood at 2.5%.Mwashekele said stunting results in delayed mental development, poor school performance and reduced intellectual capacity."Some effects of malnutrition cannot be reversed," she said.Usakos district recorded the highest incidence rate relative to its under-five population, at 7.2% in 2024, 5.3% in 2025 and 4% so far this year. Swakopmund district recorded 5.6% in 2024 and 3.5% this year."Our priority remains Swakopmund and Usakos," she said.In the Swakopmund district, most cases come from the DRC informal settlement, Mondesa and Henties Bay. In Walvis Bay, the main areas are Twaloloka, Otweya and Tutaleni. In the Usakos district, cases are concentrated in Karibib, Hakhaseb and Otjimbingwe. In Omaruru, they come from Omaruru, Omatjete and Okombahe.The presentation showed that 77% of babies under six months were exclusively breastfed in 2024 and 2025. That dropped to 73% from January to July this year.Mwashekele listed poor infant feeding, early introduction of food, household poverty, food insecurity, poor sanitation, childhood illness and limited access to health services as causes.The region has 18 clinics, two health centres, four district hospitals and 304 outreach points.She called on regional and local authorities to supply clean water and sanitation and promote household gardens. She asked schools and early childhood development centres to provide nutrition education and feeding programmes.

Malnutrition kills 35 Erongo children

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-21

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Malnutrition kills 35 Erongo children

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-21

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