Renowned ophthalmologist Dr. Helena Ndume, along with a dedicated team of medical professionals, has concluded this year's free eye clinic at Oshakati Intermediate Hospital with a focus on removing cataracts and restoring vision to patients.

This initiative has brought new hope and transformed the lives of 2,410 patients, comprised mainly of the elderly, in the Ohangwena, Omusati, Oshana, Kunene, and Kavango West regions.

Cataracts, a common cause of vision loss, have left many individuals struggling with impaired sight.

Residents of Oluthalweegolo, Uuvudhiya, and Ondjungulume villages are rejoicing as the revamped Water Canal's water flow has brought relief to both humans and livestock.

The Olushandja-Uuvudhiya canal's revamp is being spearheaded by NamWater and the Oshana, Omusati, and Oshikoto regional councils, all of which are set to benefit from it.

nbc News Reporter Ndapanda Shuuya has the details.

The Omusati, Oshana, and Ohangwena regions have taken a significant step towards promoting oral health and hygiene by jointly launching Oral Health Week.

The initiative aims to raise awareness about the importance of dental care and encourage the community to prioritise their oral well-being.

Oral Health Week is a campaign aimed at educating residents in both urban and rural areas about the significance of maintaining good oral hygiene practices.

NamWater is working on the rehabilitation of its canal in an effort to ensure that the northern communities have access to an ample supply of clean drinking water.

Two particularly significant portions, Omahenene and Olushandja, have already undergone thorough refurbishment, incurring costs that exceed N$60 million.

Health and social services for vulnerable children, adolescents, and youth in Namibia are expected to improve through the five-year Reach Namibia Programme of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

The programme will invest about N$840 million in the provision of these services.

PEPFAR focuses on expanding access to HIV prevention, treatment, and care interventions.

NamWater has removed a wall that was built by individuals at Omuthitugwaamalwa Village to divert or privatise water.

The wall interrupted water flow from Olushandja Dam's south wall outlet into the Etaka-Uuvudhiya canal for some 130 kilometres.

The drought had left livestock without water in the Oshana and Omusati regions following poor rainfall.

Namwater then started last week to pump water as a measure of relief for livestock.

Some community members, however, build walls to divert the water from the canal for themselves.

Oshana Governor Elia Irimari has encouraged female parliamentarians participating in a capacity-building workshop for women parliamentarians in Oshakati to advocate for more funding for the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (nbc).

This step is essential to enabling the broadcaster to expand its reach across all 14 regions of the country.

The Olufuko Annual Cultural Festival dinner has raised more than N$200,000 which will go towards the hosting of the event.

The festival will be held from the first to the seventh of July at Outapi.

Businessman Johannes Kambwela pledged the highest amount of N$20,000, followed by Kambwa Trading and Rani Group with a pledge of N$15,000 each, while the Face of the Olufuko Cultural Festival, Maria Nepembe, will donate N$10,000.

Thus far, 257 exhibitors have registered to take part in the exhibition.

Residents of Omusati's Amaupa and Oikokola villages are fuming over the lack of cellphone network coverage, resulting in them resorting to climbing trees in search of a network.

The fed-up villagers handed over a petition to the Tsandi Councillor and the Governor of the Omusati Region.

The villagers say the non-availability of network coverage has made it difficult for them to report incidents of crime and emergencies.

They are calling on MTC, or Telecom, to erect a network tower in their villages.

Cabinet has issued a directive to NamPower to put on hold the planned suspensions of power supply to defaulting local authorities.

The Minister of Finance and Public Enterprises, Ipumbu Shiimi, said this in a letter to the NamPower Board Chairperson, Daniel Motinga, yesterday.

Shiimi says the directive to suspend power cuts is in consideration of pending consultations between the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises, the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development, and the local authorities.