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Somalia joins the world in marking World Health Day
Mogadishu, Somalia, 9 April, 2019 – WHO in Somalia joined the world in marking World Health Day on 7 April by forming a human solidarity chain with representatives of United Nations agencies and key partners in Mogadishu. All around the world solidarity chains were formed to mark the Day and symbolize the importance of strong partnership and commitment in improving health care.
The theme of this year’s campaign was improving primary health care ‒ an entry point to the health care system ‒ as a path to achieving universal health coverage. Universal health coverage means that all people and communities can access quality health care, in an equitable manner, without being exposed to financial hardships.
Somalia is currently in the process of finalizing a roadmap in its drive to progress towards universal health coverage. This roadmap complements Somalia’s national health policy goals, and takes into consideration the current health situation across the country. With support from WHO and key partners, including donors and UN agencies, Somalia will look at ways to support communities so they can access health services.
“The Somali people are among the most resilient in the world,” said HE Dr Fauziya Abikar, Minister of Health of Somalia’s Federal Government. “If we focus on primary health care through which a mother and child can access the best services, we can contain bigger challenges.”
The Head of the UN Support Office Mr Amadu Kamara stated, “For a country like Somalia, where life expectancy for women and men is low, improving primary health care is of utmost importance. We express our solidarity and support, on behalf of all UN agencies in the country, towards using primary health care as a fundamental approach to improving health care.”
“Between 80 and 90% of essential health services can be delivered at primary health care level, including in emergencies,” said Dr Mamunur Malik, WHO Representative in Somalia. He added that WHO and Member States were promoting family practice-based, primary health care as a way to improve the overall health situation in countries. Dr Malik called upon all actors, from policy-makers to UN agencies and individuals in the community to come together to work towards the equitable and attainable goal of “Health for all, by all”. He also commended health workers in Somalia, particularly women, for their dedication to providing health services under challenging circumstances in the country.
In Hargeisa, on World Health Day, health authorities presided over a graduation ceremony for 12 medical doctors from remote rural areas after they had completed a 9-month training course in emergency obstetric care, aiming to save the lives of mothers and newborns. The training was conducted by health authorities, WHO, the University of Hargeisa and other partners.
In Baidoa, health authorities and representatives of UN agencies came together to celebrate the occasion and raise awareness of the importance of universal health coverage and the ways in which Somalis could gain access to better health care.
In other events to commemorate World Health Day, which marks WHO’s founding in 1948, Dr Mamunur Malik held bilateral discussions with HE Dr Fauziya A Nur to reaffirm their commitment to strengthening Somalia’s health system. WHO also held an open question and answer session on Twitter (@WHOSom) on Sunday, where members of the public had the opportunity to talk to a WHO health expert, Dr Rizwan Humayun, to learn more about universal health coverage and the health situation in Somalia.
Nationwide polio immunization campaign aims to leave no child under 5 behind to end polio
Mogadishu, 26 March 2019 – A nationwide polio immunization campaign has been launched in Somalia that will run from 24 to 27 March. The campaign aims to vaccinate an estimated 3.1 million children under the age of 5 in the country.
The campaign is part of WHO’s efforts to ensure that Somalia remains polio free as it has from indigenous wild poliovirus since 2014. However, 2 strains of circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses – vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) and type 3 (cVDPV3) are concurrently circulating in the country and have left 12 Somali children paralyzed.
Since the first week of September 2018, the country has not witnessed any new case of cVDPVs in children with acute flaccid paralysis. The same virus has also been confirmed in Kenya. Vaccine-derived polio viruses are rare and only occur when polio vaccination rates are low resulting in low immunity against polio virus.
The national polio immunization campaign is being launched by the Government of Somalia with the active support of WHO and UNICEF. The campaign is being supported by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
Around 15 000 frontline polio health workers are actively engaged in the campaign and will visit every house to ensure that all children under the age of 5 in the country get at least one single dose of oral polio vaccine during the campaign. Every under-immunized child, in every location in the country, including areas that have not been affected with the polioviruses yet, will be reached during this nationwide campaign.
The campaign is part of WHO’s polio eradication initiative in Somalia which aims to keep the country free from polio and to build immunity of all children under 5 against poliovirus. Multiple vaccination campaigns are also being planned in the future as part of this initiative to protect Somali children against the threat of polio.
The WHO country office in Somalia is working with Somali health authorities to improve routine immunization for polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases and strengthen surveillance to ensure that the country remains polio free. Apart from maintaining high levels of vaccination coverage, WHO is also supporting national and local health authorities to maintain a robust surveillance system for acute flaccid paralysis and rapid outbreak response capacities to investigate and detect any suspected case of wild or vaccine-derived poliovirus early.
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Driving change for Somali mothers and children
11 March 2019 – In most parts of the world, women announce a pregnancy with excitement; they can count on quality and timely support when delivering a child. In Somalia, excitement is often lined with unease, as women are cognizant of the risks associated with pregnancy and delivery.
Inadequate health facilities, particularly in remote, rural areas, force women to deliver babies at home. Birth attendants are not always qualified; traditional birth attendants, who are used often, lack technical skills and may even be forced to use contaminated equipment at times. In many instances, expectant mothers simply cannot afford to visit health facilities.
In a country where women often have multiple children with little time between each pregnancy, the lack of infrastructure, including roads and ambulatory services, further exacerbated by insecurity, increases the chances of mothers and their newborns losing their lives, or women experiencing complications during childbirth.
Cultural beliefs passed down over generations result in mothers having no say in providing consent for caesarean section during deliveries, should they require this support. Birth spacing is also a culturally sensitive topic to broach, leaving many women with no time to recover before they conceive their next child. A common practice in Somalia, female genital mutilation, causes obstructed labour. One out of every 12 Somali women dies due to causes related to pregnancy.
Changing the status quo
Halima Abdi Sheikh, better known as Mama Halima Abdi Sheikh, is a pioneer in maternal health services in Somalia. She has dedicated herself to improving the health of mothers, newborns and children – one delivery at a time. Serving WHO in Somalia as Maternal Newborn Child and Adolescent Health Officer for South Central Somalia since 1995, Mama Halima is a true advocate for women’s health. She is also a senior midwife, an educator and a leader. She works to share her passion to improve maternal and child health with Somalia’s next generation of health workers. Being one of the key founders of the Somali Midwifery Association, established in 2012, Mama Halima succeeded in bringing Somalia’s midwives together to speak with one voice and with one platform to represent them nationally. The association’s main aim is to provide quality and timely health care for newborns and mothers.
“Mothers in Somalia trust us. WHO provides medical supplies to treat mothers in health facilities. We are training health workers to upgrade their knowledge and skills so they can deliver babies professionally, and attend to mothers and children in a timely manner,” says Mama Halima, squaring her shoulders proudly. “WHO tools and guidelines are used to support the Government to ensure that Somalia’s maternal and child health services will meet international standards.
Hoping to leave a better legacy
“We have a long way to go, but we can do it,” says a hopeful Mama Halima. “All we need is support and for everyone to remember that they have a role to play.” She explains that Somali authorities and their international and national partners should prioritize the establishment of additional health centres and ambulances, each equipped with modern tools and trained staff. By increasing remuneration for health care providers, authorities can encourage the workforce to provide better services. Regulating legal frameworks on midwifery and maternal health systems would strengthen overall health service delivery. There is also an urgent need to develop the capacity of midwives and health workers by providing on-the-job training, introducing modern training centres and improving the quality of health education offered in Somalia.
When asked what changes she would like to see in the society towards women, Mama Halima ponders for a while, before saying, “I would love to see men change their attitudes, and prioritize and learn about the importance of women’s health. I would also love to see religious leaders empower women by airing their voices. If they can encourage birth spacing and advocate for better health for women and children, they would be leaving the best legacy for the next generation. Women really should receive quality health services. After all, women are raising the next generation of leaders.
Somalia developing comprehensive plan to improve health of mothers, children and adolescents
WHO and partners support development of Somali reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child and adolescent health strategyMogadishu, 24 January 2019 - With support from the World Health Organization (WHO) and other United Nations partners, Somalia is currently developing a strategy that will change the rhetoric in the country and ensure Somali mothers and children can access quality health services equitably all across urban, rural areas in the country. Known as the “Reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child and adolescent health strategic plan” for Somalia, it focuses on using universal health coverage – a concept that ensures health is equitably delivered to all, without beneficiaries suffering financial hardships while accessing health – as a key tool to availing lifesaving health services to Somalis in urban and rural areas, as well as those with nomadic lifestyles.
Somali mothers and children have been enduring limited access to some of the most basic health services for decades. This has translated in scores of families losing their loved ones to preventable diseases every year. One out of every 12 women dies due to pregnancy-related causes, mostly due to ineffective antenatal care, child deliveries conducted in the absence of skilled birth attendants, late management of complications, such as bleeding, and difficulty in accessing health facilities, particularly for rural populations.
Statistics for children are just as disturbing, with one out of every 7 Somali children dying before seeing their fifth birthday. Leading causes of infant and child mortality are pneumonia, diarrhoea, measles and neonatal disorders.
At a consultative meeting in Mogadishu last week, where partners discussed this critical strategic plan, the Somali Federal Government Minister of Health HE Dr Fawziya Abikar Nur emphasized the importance of health and other key partners in rolling out activities outlined in the plan.
“This groundbreaking strategy will make much-needed contributions in reducing
reproductive, maternal, newborn and child mortality and morbidity in Somalia,” said Dr Ghulam Popal, the WHO Somalia Country Representative. “One key element, for example, will be training for health staff, in areas such as lifesaving resuscitation of newborns, and to deliver children professionally.”
Basic and comprehensive lifesaving services that will be offered through the strategy include safe blood transfusions and caesarean section deliveries for women delivering babies at both community and health facility levels. The strategy will also promote continued care across pregnancy and early childhood, as well as the effective referral during pregnancy and childbirth. Care for newborns will entail the provision of medical supplies and equipment; and monitoring of the low birth weight of pre-term infants. The use of integrated management of childhood illnesses (IMCI) – an integrated and holistic approach to child health that focuses on the wellbeing of the child – will promote comprehensive childcare, using new developments and protocol.
