16 Nov 2016

The acting Minister of Health and Wellness, Mr Dikgang Makgalemele, says shortage of accommodation is a major challenge in most health facilities including Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital.

Responding to a question from Member of Parliament for Francistown South, Mr Winter Mmolotsi, Mr Makgalemele said 17 doctors and 405 nurses were not accommodated in institutional houses.

He said due to unavailability of staff accommodation, they were unable to accommodate all the Nyangabgwe staff entitled to institutional housing.

The acting minister pointed out that the hospital institutional allocation list dated as far back as 2009 with the majority of staff in the list being nurses.

He stated that the hospital had 54 units in the premises as well as 40 institutional houses in Area A.

He said allocation was done across all cadres as and when a unit became vacant.

Mr Makgalemele further explained that doctors also applied for accommodation at the department of housing, adding that they had requested the housing department to prioritise doctors when allocating houses.

He said the housing department was also sourcing private houses since there were no vacant Botswana Housing Corporation pool houses at the moment.

He also stated that the health ministryhad been assured that doctors would be allocated houses as soon as they were available.

Mr Makgalemele also informed the House that his ministry had plans to build 734 staff houses of which 543 were under ESP.
He stated that Francistown had been allocated the largest number of 50.

Mr Makgalemele also stated that expatriate staff members of all cadres were currently paying subsidised rentals, saying subside has also been extended to local doctors.

Mr Mmolotsi had asked the minister to state the number of nurses and doctors at Nyangabgwe hospital who were not housed in institutional houses. He had also wanted to know when they would be allocated houses.

The MP further wanted to know if the ministry would consider subsidising their rental. BOPA