Somalia’s Hormuud Salaam Foundation donates incubators to Banadir Hospital

Somalia’s Hormuud Salaam Foundation donates incubators to Banadir Hospital

MOGADISHU, Somalia – Somalia’s Hormuud Salaam Foundation on Thursday donated incubators to Banadir Hospital, the largest public health facility in the country, which will help newborn babies born prematurely survive in extreme conditions.

A study conducted by the Ministry of Health in Somalia shows that at least 12 percent of children are born prematurely, making it difficult for a number of them to survive. This, the Hormuud Salaam Foundation said, prompted the company to step in and help the Mogadishu-based health facility.

“In Somalia, 12% of babies are born prematurely. To give them the best chance to thrive and grow, the Hormuud Salaam Foundation donated 10 incubators to Banadir Hospital,” the company said in a tweet. “This is part of their ongoing efforts to improve healthcare for mothers, children and the wider Somali community.”

During the handover of the 10 incubators, officials from the Ministry of Health and Banadir Hospital attended the event. Hormuud Salaam Foundation chairman Abdullahi Nur Osman said the hospital had also asked the foundation to donate beds.

The incubators, he added, were bought from abroad as part of the foundation’s philanthropic activities across the country. Somalia has struggled with health infrastructure, making it difficult for doctors to save thousands of people.

Fartun Sharif, director of Banadir Maternity and Children’s Hospital, said the equipment donated by Hormuud Salaam Foundation will help meet the hospital’s needs and thanked the management and staff of Hormuud Salaam Foundation. He further said that the foundation will continue to work closely with the Ministry of Health.

The director of the family health department within the facility, Dr. Ubah Farah Ahmed thanked the foundation for the donation, adding that more companies should help the government sustain ever-increasing medical demands around the country.

Abdullahi Salad Hussein, Director of Administration and Finance at the Ministry of Health in the Federal Government of Somalia, praised the role of the Hormuud Salaam Foundation in the development of the hospital. The foundation will also donate a generator to the hospital.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the Hormuud Salaam Foundation also participated in suppressing the population by purchasing, among other things, masks and disinfectants. The telecommunications company has expanded its networks and even benefited North East Kenya.