Dhusamareb –Galmudug State initiated yesterday the COVAX vaccination campaign with the State Vice-President, Ali Dahir Eid, the Speaker of Galmudug Parliament, Mohamed Nur Ga’al, and the Minister of Health, Dr. Abdiwali Abdillahi Jama, among the first to receive the jab. The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Adam Abdelmoula, and the World Health Organization Representative for Somalia, Dr. Mamunur Malik, witnessed the rollout as part of their visit to Dhushamareb, during which they also presented three solar-powered plants to the Galmudug Ministry of Health.

The availability of medical oxygen in health facilities is critical to saving people’s lives, in any medical condition. Globally, there is a critical shortage of medical oxygen globally, especially in low income countries. Somalia’s infant and maternal deaths are among the highest in the world.

“Reducing this number will require bold and strong political commitments to improve access to high quality health services in the country,” said Mr. Abdelmoula during the handover ceremony. “Without addressing the gap in access to medical oxygen, we will fail to achieve this.”

There is global evidence that solar-powered oxygen can reduce child deaths among pediatric admissions in general hospitals, and child deaths from pneumonia. Such systems can also be substantially cheaper than standard oxygen cylinders in the longer run.

The delegation discussed with the Galmudug administration the priorities of Galmudug State, including gaps in healthcare, humanitarian situation and COVID-19. Mr. Abdelmoula praised the administration for the progress it has made thus far and encouraged them to develop their own development plan that is linked to the priorities of Somalia’s ninth National Development Plan (NDP-9). He also appealed to the authorities to continue working with communities to ensure COVID-19 vaccine uptake and enhanced awareness of the dangers of the COVID-19 virus among the population.