Editorial: Ramatex revival signals long-overdue shift from rent to responsibility

The health ministry’s decision to refurbish part of the old Ramatex garment factory into its new Central Medical Stores is a rare moment of fiscal courage in a government often criticised for waste.

Ramatex has stood for years as a monument to missed opportunity – a vast industrial shell allowed to decay while ministries quietly sign lease agreements worth millions for office space across Windhoek. Public money has flowed steadily to private landlords even as state-owned infrastructure gathered dust.

Against that backdrop, the move to repurpose Ramatex signals something different. It recognises a basic truth: government cannot justify renting shiny new buildings when hospitals face stock-outs and the Central Medical Stores struggles to secure essential medicines. 

Opting for existing public infrastructure rather than pursuing expensive new premises is not glamorous. It is practical. It is disciplined. And it sends the right message in a constrained fiscal environment. When medicine shelves are empty, priorities must be clear. Cutting rental costs and redirecting resources toward procurement and distribution is not merely a budgeting decision – it is a public health imperative. Other ministries should take note.