The Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) and the University of Namibia (UNAM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the field of Health and Applied Sciences, in a move aimed at strengthening collaboration between the two institutions.

The agreement is described as a concrete step towards creating new pathways for training, research and human resource development within Namibia's health sector.

UNAM Vice Chancellor Kenneth Matengu says the university is committed to producing competent health professionals capable of addressing the country's healthcare challenges.

"This MoU that we are signing today, minister, as a university, we are very, very grateful that this opportunity has finally come. Because we don't want to just issue qualifications; we want to make sure that all aspects of a human being are covered in the way we train. And when we train, these people must be ready to save on day one of graduation."

Professor Matengu expressed hope that UNAM clinicians will have opportunities to be placed within health institutions after graduation, describing the agreement as the beginning of a broader partnership and what he describes as a "Memorandum of Action".

Health and Social Services Minister Esperance Luvindao stressed the need to train health workers who are passionate about communities and committed to contributing meaningfully to Namibia's health sector.

"This particular partnership is focused on a foundation that I would say is really centred around the goal of providing quality health care to all Namibians, irrespective of socioeconomic status. Why? Because it is the health care workers. We often say the patients are the centre of health care. Yes, that is 100%, but now the foundation of health care is the health care workers. And so your doctors, your nurses, your pharmacists, your dentists, and your physiotherapists – all of them create that foundation because without them, we don't have a healthcare system."

Dr. Luvindao said the partnership forms part of efforts to rebuild trust in healthcare workers, adding that its success will ultimately be measured by how patients receive and experience healthcare.

The two institutions say the collaboration is expected to strengthen the link between academic training and practical healthcare delivery.