Chitipa District Councilconstructs maternity wing
Mahowe Health Centre in-charge Mike Mughogho has commended Chitipa District Council for constructing a maternity wing at the facility.
He expressed the sentiments on Wednesday when the council handed over the K55 million maternity wing constructed using resources from Constituency Development Fund (CDF).
Said Mughogho: “The maternity wing is important in the area as it is a hard-to-reach place. It will help to reduce home deliveries and maternal deaths because pregnant women will now deliver at the hands of skilled birth attendants at the facility.
“Previously, there were many home deliveries, which resulted in increased neonatal deaths and complications.”
One of the women in Senior Chief Nthalire, Edith Kaonga, commended the council for the project, saying it will ease the burden of travelling from Mahowe to Nthalire Health Centre.
“We faced mobility challenges travelling to Nthalire for deliveries, which forced many women to deliver at home. It was difficult for people to pay K10 000 for transport to Nthalire,” she said
Chitipa District Council director of public works Engineer Misheck Gondwe, who represented district commissioner McMillan Magomero, said there was need for construction of staff houses at the health facility.
He, however, thanked Mwenekumbilo Construction managing director Grace Msukwa for quality work which also finished on time.
Said Gondwe: “Being a woman, I salute her because we have had male contractors who have at times frustrated the district council in the way they execute works on site.
“I advise her to continue doing good work in other districts since it is in line with government policy to construct projects of high quality.”
Mahowe Health Centre attends to almost 45 deliveries a month and receives at least two home-delivery complications.
