Information minister Dr Peya Mushelenga said it is important that the nation should be kept updated regarding the Covid-19 situation in the country.

Mushelenga said this when he spoke during the official opening of the Covid-19 command centre in Windhoek on Thursday.

The Covid-19 command centre is based at the Khomas regional council offices.

The information ministry deputy minister Emma Teofilus will coordinate the activities at the centre.

According to Mushelenga, the centre would help the nation to follow new developments, if any and know the programmes and plans that have been put in place by the government.

“Information dissemination is important to put to rest public anxiety,” the minister said. “For information dissemination to be effective, it should be properly coordinated and disseminated in a professional manner.”

Mushelenga said over the past days, social media has been inundated with fake news about the state of the Covid-19 pandemic and as a ministry, they consulted the Editors’ Forum and agreed that both the government and media houses are important stakeholders in information dissemination to fight the spread of the pandemic in Namibia.

“In information dissemination, media houses have an ethical obligation to adhere to accurate reporting. This is particularly true especially for COVID-19, as misinformation and disinformation can cause panic and uncertainty,” he said.

Mushelenga further said to avoid misinformation and disinformation,  the Centre serves as a one-stop-shop through which all media enquiries to the Government related to the COVID-19 will be channelled, after which they will be transmitted to line ministries to provide information.

He added that responses will be provided at the daily briefings that are coordinated by the information, health ministries while all media houses will be represented.