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Nearly 30 years of conflict and instability have left a strong mark in Somalia’s recent history. Some progress is being made, but the country still faces many challenges.
Somalia’s health indicators, especially for women and children, are among the lowest in the world.
Recently released statistics show that maternal mortality and deaths of children under five remain high, while female genital mutilation is still prevalent. The prevalence of early marriage also contributes to high fertility rates. These problems are further exacerbated by the cramped conditions at the country’s more than 2,000 sites for internally displaced people.
An innovative partnership between WHO, The Swedish and Somali Ministry of Health was created to tackle these and other persistent health issues. The partnership, born out of political dialogue and a high-level Swedish mission to Somalia in 2020, aims to create an independent Somali public health authority and modernize the country’s health information management system.
This collaboration between Sweden and WHO in Somalia was inspired by WHOGeneral Program of Work 2019-2013 to deliver impact at country level.
Improving health outcomes in Somalia
Sweden’s funding initiatives and active collaboration in the country, supported by WHO, aim to promote equitable access to health care and sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Sweden works closely with WHO to support the creation of an independent Somali public health authority: the National Institute of Health. This includes technical support from the Swedish Public Health Agency.
“We strive to help make the National Institute of Health a center of excellence. It is one of the priorities of WHO“Said Kyle DeFreitas, head of external relations and resource mobilization at WHO Somalia.
“We will help build the capacity of the institute, which will enable Somalia to deal more effectively with public health issues in the future, including potential epidemics and pandemics,” he added.
Dr Abdifatah Diriye Ahmed, executive director of the National Institute of Health, said the newly created institution would be one of the most important and crucial steps towards establishing a strong health system in addition to the areas of equitable access and reproductive health and rights in Somalia. Over the past three decades, the healthcare system has been fragmented and faced many challenges.
“With the goal of becoming the leading center of excellence and evidence-based knowledge dissemination in research, the National Institute of Health will be the epicenter of efforts to shape the new health care system. health of Somalia and the future of healthy Somalis, ”he said.
Second Swedish project with WHO and the Somali Ministry of Health is a collaboration with SPIDER Center, an institute based at Stockholm University. The initiative aims to help authorities digitize the country’s health information management system from three pilot sites in Puntland, Galmudug and Banaadir.
WHO and the National Institute of Health will also work with the SPIDER Center to help establish a state-of-the-art integrated disease surveillance and response system.
A unique partnership
“Sweden as a donor doesn’t just provide financial support WHO to carry out a project or program. We work together. We network together. We strive to achieve common goals in the health sector in Somalia. We make resources available and we use them to push things together in the right direction, ”says Daniel Magnusson, Senior Program Officer in the Somalia Section of the Swedish Embassy in Nairobi.
An essential characteristic of the partnership focuses on the exchange of expertise which will take place through the secondment of personnel. An experienced professional will join WHO Somalia should, among other tasks, focus on supporting the National Institute of Health and working with SPIDER Center. Another expert consultant will join at a later stage.
After the first step, the team will assess their progress and make any necessary adjustments.
A coherent UN system
“Sweden believes in a United Nations system that works together. Our perspective on health sector development in countries like Somalia is that there needs to be strong collaboration and coordination between different multilateral agencies like WHO and bilateral actors like Sweden, combined with strong engagement with government at different levels, ”explained Daniel.
Building a stronger primary health care system is crucial to creating a better future for the Somali people and therefore is part of WHOthe main objective of.
“A strong primary health care system can ensure equitable access to health care and rights to health, including reproductive and sexual health, for women and other marginalized groups. “This is an investment to manage health security threats at the local level before they become a national threat or an epidemic,” says Dr Mamunur Malik, WHO Representative in Somalia.
Despite the long road ahead, the collaboration between Sweden, WHO and the Somali Ministry of Health is an important step towards ensuring that no one in Somalia will be left behind on the road to health for all.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of the World Health Organization (WHO).
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