The Swapo Party Youth League has called on the government to start with the construction of a referral hospital in the northern regions to alleviate the growing congestion of patients at the Central and Katutura State hospitals.

The league's Secretary for Information, Publicity, and Mobilisation, Moses Shikerete, listed a range of issues that the latest Swapo Congress has decided on but that remain unattended.

Shikerete urged the Ministry of Health to develop internal capacity to procure its own medicine and equipment needed to solve the shortages of ambulances and medication at some health centres. The Party, through Congress, has directed the government to develop a policy to support apprenticeship programmes that allow on-the-job training to prepare job seekers for the market.

However, the policy is being implemented at a slow pace, and action needs to be taken. In addition, the league calls for the local procurement of drought relief food and for the government not to compromise on capacitating and empowering local farmers to reduce drought in the country.

Shikerete says that the slow employment of fishermen and the retrenchment of workers need to be addressed. The Youth League, he said, has endorsed Netumbo Nandi Ndaitwah as the sole Swapo Party candidate for the country's presidency.

"All members of the Swapo Party are therefore called upon to rally behind the party's sole candidate and deliver a decisive and resounding victory for the party in 2024. We would like to put it out there that there will be no extraordinary congress of the Swapo Party to elect a presidential candidate."