UEDF opens E4m staff block, to house 48 nurses
MATSAPHA – The Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (UEDF) has officially opened a new staff block valued at E4 million, which will house 48 nurses.
The building funded by the US Embassy, in collaboration with Department of Defence (DOD) and University Research Co (URC), was opened by Army Commander General Four Star Mashikilisane Fakudze at a ceremony held at Phocweni Barracks yesterday.
The new staff block will be a valuable addition to the UEDF, providing much-needed space for its nursing staff. Microprojects was responsible for the structural engineering support, while the medics unit was responsible for managing the work of the funders. The DOD, together with the UEDF, Microprojects and URC, worked closely to complete the project within eight months.
The army commander said the vision of the UEDF military health services was to ensure a healthy and productive military through the delivery of comprehensive HIV, TB, non-communicable, mental health and other health services to address Eswatini’s health goals.
Fakudze highlighted that the Sabers 2020 study was a collaboration between the US Government, the Ministry of Health, the Government Central Statistical Office, the UEDF and URC, which helped profile the health status of the military personnel. He said that the UEDF, together with URC, were actively working to improve the health status of all military personnel using the data obtained from the Sabers report.
He extended gratitude for the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and DOD support that contributed to the significant reduction of HIV/TB-related mortality among the military since the inception of the programme in 2001.
“The DOD support through URC as an implementing partner has played a huge role in ensuring that the military health staff have decent housing, which allows for more health staff, improves their proximity to the clinic and allows for the provision of emergency care and continuous service provision at all hours,” Fakudzde said. He detailed that when the project started in 2001, they had a rudimentary clinic infrastructure in the army units. Fakudze attested to the fact that through this support, 10 military battalions have fully fledged state-of-theart clinics serving both military personnel and surrounding communities.
“With the able local leadership of the DOD programme manager, URC and the military combat unit, the old hazardous asbestos structure was renovated into this beautiful structure that we all see today,” he said.
The army commander assured the US Government that achieving HIV, TB and non-communicable diseases targets would be an easier task as the medics staff reside in such a beautiful structure. He said he made a visit to this structure before the handover and realised that it is a state-of-the-art space that would offer privacy and a conducive environment for the military medics’ staff. “For your information, I have instructed my projects team to use this structure as a model of excellence for all military structures that will be developed in the military,” he said.
Fakudze pointed out that the facility had benefited from this landmark infrastructure improvement and was certified by the International Standards Organisation (ISO) through the Eswatini Standards Authority (SWASA), which was the local standards authority. He added that in February 2024, Phocweni had been successfully audited and certified.
Programme
US Embassy Charge De’Affairs Caitlin Piper, said the US Government’s PEPFAR programme was committed to ensuring a safe working environment for all healthcare workers. Piper said it was a pleasure for the military staff to know that they can now come home to these new amazing facilities. She revealed that PEPFAR supported nine military sites in Eswatini and offered essential services to the men and women in uniform. “Phocweni offers a high level of care, not only to the military personnel but to the public as well; 80 per cent of emaSwati who receive health services at Phocweni are actual civilians,” she said.