Unam public health programme was legit – Ballotti

Deputy education minister Dino Ballotti has clarified that the University of Namibia's discontinued bachelor of science in public health programme never required approval from the Health Professions Council of Namibia (HPCNA) because it was not intended to result in a registrable health profession.

Ballotti was responding to questions raised in parliament about governance, regulatory compliance and accountability around the programme, which was phased out in 2024.

Critics have argued that graduates of the programme were left without clear opportunities after completion.

At the centre of the debate was whether Unam violated Section 27(1) of the Health Professions Act No. 16 of 2024 by implementing a programme without obtaining prior approval from the HPCNA.

The deputy minister confirmed that "as this is not a profession regulated by the Act, no approval was required".

He noted that concerns centred on the misconception that the inclusion of "public health" in the programme title automatically made it eligible for statutory registration.

Ballotti explained that the qualification was designed to prepare graduates for careers in health policy development, epidemiology, disease surveillance, health promotion, environmental health, research and programme management rather than direct patient care.

"A public health degree is therefore an academic qualification, not a profession with a statutory scope of practice," he said.

He further noted that holders of public health qualifications typically work in research, policy, advisory and programme management roles and not as independent clinical practitioners.

He also explained that public health is an academic and policy-oriented field that draws from medicine, economics and social sciences but is not listed as a registrable profession under the Health Professions Act.

Approval process

Addressing questions about the programme's approval process, Ballotti said the curriculum underwent Unam's internal governance procedures, benchmarking exercises and registration with the Namibia Qualifications Authority (NQA).

He added that the health ministry and the HPCNA were also consulted.

On the programme's eventual phase-out, Ballotti said graduates were not left without opportunities as employment pathways remained available across government ministries, regional health offices, non-governmental organisations, private health institutions, research organisations and academia.

He said the qualification was discontinued as part of Unam’s curriculum transformation and restructuring efforts aimed at aligning health programmes with professions that qualify for registration under the Health Professions Act.

Ballotti added that postgraduate pathways remain available through master's and doctoral programmes, allowing students to continue advancing in the public health field.

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