Tropical cyclone Gati hit the coast of Puntland in northern Somalia in late November, including its main city of Bosaso with a population of almost 500,000. The cyclone was followed by unprecedented rains that caused widespread flooding.
The destruction caused by the flooding affected large numbers of people who had been displaced from their homes by recurrent violence, droughts or flooding in previous years and who had settled in makeshift shelters and informal camps on flood-prone vacant land on the coastal outskirts of Bosaso. Some 40,000 displaced people living in the Balade neighbourhood, in the west of the city, were especially hard hit.
“Families had sought refuge and settled in a low-lying and flood-prone area near a huge informal rubbish dump,” says Abdikarim Tahir Gure, deputy country representative for Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF). “The storms and heavy rainfall of cyclone Gati badly damaged their shelters and destroyed most of their belongings.” “We see that people need food, shelter, clean water and latrines,” says Abdikarim. “We are worried about the potential spread of waterborne and vector-borne diseases, like cholera and malaria, due to poor hygiene and crowded living conditions. We are also concerned about malnutrition among children because of the shortage of food. People here were already struggling to make ends meet against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many simply cannot afford the escalating prices for food staples.”
As a preventive measure, MSF teams, working with local health authorities, have distributed high-energy food supplements known as Plumpy’Nut to all families in the Balade neighbourhood. They have also distributed blankets, sleeping mats, mosquito nets, soap and jerry-cans, and organised a one-off clearance and collection of rubbish from around the camps in the west of the city to help improve people’s living conditions.
MSF has also trained 25 local health workers in cholera prevention and treatment, and equipped local health authorities with a cholera treatment kit which could treat more than 600 patients with the waterborne disease.
“We are concerned about people’s access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation,” says Abdikarim. “It’s very important to quickly mobilise and bring in resources to improve the poor water and sanitation conditions to prevent the spread of diseases – especially considering that Bosaso is prone to cholera, with the most recent outbreaks in 2018, 2019 and February 2020.”
MSF’s short-term response is being carried out in partnership with local health authorities, other government institutions and the community. “This is our first visit to the town, and our team has prioritised support to the most vulnerable displaced people, especially those living in the Balade neighbourhood,” says Abdikarim. “Local authorities and the community have welcomed our emergency support to people affected by the cyclone.”
MSF teams are also working in other areas of Somalia to provide people with medical care. “Across Somalia, we are looking to ensure that people have access to medical care in areas where needs are critical and where the security conditions permit,” says Abdikarim. “While this is certainly challenging, we can rely on our dedicated Somali medical staff, many of whom have previously worked with MSF, to build capacity and ensure improved access to healthcare in Somalia.”
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International medical organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) carries out regular medical activities in hospitals in towns and cities across Somalia, with a focus on maternal healthcare, paediatric care, emergency care, nutritional support, and the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis (TB) and multidrug-resistant TB. In some places MSF also runs mobile clinics for internally displaced people.
MSF provides medical and humanitarian assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters or exclusion from healthcare in 72 countries. Our actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of impartiality, independence and neutrality.