The Zambezi Health Directorate has urged expectant mothers in rural areas to make use of the maternity waiting shelter at the Katima Mulilo State Hospital.

The shelter, funded by the Social Security Commission of Namibia, was inaugurated last year to accommodate expectant mothers from rural areas while waiting to deliver.

Kachana Sikanda, a senior registered nurse and member of the management team responsible for nursing services at the hospital, said about 21 expectant mothers have so far made use of the facility since its inauguration.

A waiting shelter for expectant mothers and newborns was inaugurated at the Katima Mulilo clinic in the Zambezi Region.

The shelter is financed by the Social Security Commission and can accommodate 80 expectant mothers at a time.

It has an indoor and outdoor kitchen, courtyards, and a multi-purpose room to be used by mothers for crafts and other activities.

Inaugurating the facility, former First Lady and Patron Penehupifo Pohamba said the shelter will help vulnerable mothers who are often left to explore unsafe options.