Machinga district director of health services Jones Chise says they have received K974 million from government under Health Facility Maintenance Fund in the 2024/25 financial year to rehabilitate healthcare facilities in the district.
Speaking on Saturday during the handover to a contractor at Machinga Health Centre in Traditional Authority (T/A) Nkula, he said they are targeting to renovate nine facilities, focusing on renovating maternity wards, under-five clinics, outpatient departments and connecting electricity.
undergo renovation
“We have two facilities that previously did not have maternity wards. We are currently renovating buildings at Chamba and Mlomba health facilities to convert them into maternity units so that women will not have to travel long distances to access these services,” he said.
Chise said some facilities, such as Mkwepele, Ntaja and Chamba had challenges accessing water, but they rectified the problem.
He said: “We are also targeting three more, including the district hospital, Kawinga and Namanja health centres to improve their water services.
“In general, our goal is to carry out renovations that will significantly enhance service delivery, ensuring that people in Machinga are a step closer to receiving high-quality healthcare services.”
T/A Nkula welcomed the initiative, saying renovating the facility will reduce the challenge his subjects were facing in accessing quality healthcare services.
Shakira Rajabu from T/A Chamba commended the initiative, saying women travel 15 kilometres to access antenatal services at St Luke’s Hospital in Zomba.
“We will no longer endure long journeys to deliver our babies,” she said.
However, a representative of people with disabilities in the district Umali Sungani urged the council to make the facilities disability friendly.
