Environmental health practitioners petition govt for grade structure review

Allexer Namundjembo

Environmental health practitioners and assistants across Namibia have petitioned the ministry of health and social services (MoHSS) to review and upgrade the profession’s grading structure, arguing that their qualifications and responsibilities are not adequately reflected in the current public service framework.

The petition, addressed to the health minister and copied to the Public Service Commission, the Office of the Prime Minister’s human resources management division, and the Namibia Public Workers Union, calls for a comprehensive review of environmental health positions within the public service.

According to the petitioners, environmental health practitioners, who hold honours degrees in Environmental Health Science, and assistants, who hold diploma qualifications, perform essential public health functions that are central to disease prevention and community well-being.

The petition states that the profession is responsible for critical services, including food safety, water quality monitoring, sanitation, waste management, vector control, pollution control, occupational health, disease surveillance, outbreak investigations, environmental risk assessments, port health services, and health promotion.