At the Katima Mulilo hospital, 12 babies were born on New Year's Day—eight boys and four girls.

An exhausted yet happy new mother, Nambile Mbala, who was the first to give birth to a baby boy shortly after two in the morning, said she was speechless.

She says, despite the delays, she feels a sense of being free and is happy to have finally met her firstborn child, whom she named Musweu.

Another mother who gave birth to a boy, Mutinta Musali, says regardless of the fact that this was her fifth baby, one never gets used to the experience of birthing a child, nor does the pain and confusion become less, while Mary Augusto says she is yet to name her baby boy, whom she had thought would be a girl.

All mothers are said to be in good health and look forward to taking their little ones home soon.