Up to 120 more ambulances are needed in the health sector to ensure smooth delivery of referral services, acting director of planning in the ministry of health Hetherwick Njati disclosed.

He made the remarks in Lilongwe when the Japanese embassy in Malawi donated a specialized medical referral recycled ambulance worth over K5 million to Nkhoma CCAP Mission Hospital.

Njati said currently the referral system continue to face transportation challenges and rural hospitals are the hardest hit.

This he said was putting lives of patients at risk, because patients in critical condition are failing to access quick and necessary treatment.

In his remarks Japanese Ambassador to Malawi Fujio Samukakwa revealed that there are some non-profit making organisations in his country that are willing to donate recycled ambulances and other vehicles to Malawi which only require shipping funds.