The Namibia Local Authority Workers Union (NALAWU)  has demanded a 3% salary increase for Mariental municipal workers during a lunch-hour protest march. 

Rainwater from a leaking roof flooded parts of Mariental State Hospital.

Videos of the water leakage, showing nurses mopping up rainwater, circulated widely on social media.

The NBC News team reached out to Hardap Health Directorate Regional Director Yvonne Stephanus, who declined to comment.

Residents of Mariental's Extension Five informal settlement accuse the municipality of relocating them to a flood-prone area after heavy rain flooded their homes this week.

Residents say they feel hopeless after rainwater flooded their homes and destroyed their belongings.

Just over three months after a horrific incident on the road between the Hardap Dam and Mariental, which claimed 16 lives, those involved and affected by the road crash still find it difficult to come to terms.

A 58-year-old truck driver is in stable condition after a truck accident early this morning roughly 30 km from Mariental on the road to Gibeon.

In a bid to enhance citizen engagement, the Office of the Prime Minister has hosted its first-ever workshop on the Government Communication System (GCS) for Local Authorities.
 
Held in Mariental, the workshop brought together public relations officers from local authorities across the country.

Mariental Municipality has taken the lead to strengthen urban resilience through the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) under the Making Cities Resilient 2030 (MCR2030) initiative. 

The Namibian government has reaffirmed its commitment to working closely with the business fraternity to address challenges that hinder trade and investment growth. 

For residents of Gibeon Village and nearby farms, access to medical doctors means long travel distances to the nearest hospital in Mariental, since the village is served only by a clinic staffed with nurses.

Well-wishers lined up along the streets of Mariental to get a glimpse of the recently crowned Miss Namibia, Johanna Swartbooi. 

Swartbooi was on a tour of the southern towns of Mariental, Keetmanshoop, and her home village of Vaalgras.