SOS Children in Somalia

Famine in Somalia

Due to the severe drought in Somalia, there is desperate need for emergency food and medical aid for the many displaced people sheltering at refugee camps. SOS Children have launched an Emergency Relief Programme to help children and families most in need. You can support children in Somalia in the long-term by sponsoring SOS Children's Village Mogadishu.

Conflict affects SOS Children’s projects in Mogadishu

Ongoing armed clashes between Government troops and the Al-Shabab group in Somalia continues to impact on our ability to carry out relief activities for victims of the current famine. SOS Children’s Village Mogadishu and the SOS Hospital in the area have come under heavy artillery fire and we have evacuated both projects in order to ensure the safety of all of our children, SOS mothers, and staff. At the present time, we are unable to operate our maternity ward at the hospital, or provide vital medical services for hundreds of thousands of refugees in the area suffering from malnutrition and associated conditions. Read more about the situation and how you can help.

Overview of Somalia

Somalia, on the eastern coast of Africa between the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a predominantly nomadic population, few natural resources and a drought-prone climate.

In 1977, war against Ethiopia increased economic and social problems, followed in 1991 by the outbreak of civil war. The situation is still unstable, particularly in the capital Mogadishu where looting and outbreaks of violence between rival clans are common. The deteriorating health of the population is a cause for major concern, as there are still very few clinics and hospitals. Malaria, TB and eye diseases are widespread as is malnutrition, particularly after the frequent droughts. There are 600,000 orphans in Somalia, and with a crumbling infrastructure and crippling poverty, many children are left to fend for themselves.

Our Work in Somalia

Mogadishu

Mogadishu was chosen as location of the first SOS Children's Village in the country. SOS Children's Village Mogadishu opened in 1985 and is situated about five miles from the city centre. It has 12 family houses for 120 orphaned or abandoned children, a village director's house, a guest house, an SOS aunts' house (SOS aunts are SOS mothers-in-training), a sports ground, a playground, a workshop, and lots of open space for the children to play together and make friends. The SOS Nursery, built on the same site, has four classrooms for 120 little children, a kitchen and a playground. The children come from both the SOS Children’s Village and the local community.

From about the age of fifteen, the SOS teenagers live in an SOS Youth Home for the period of their secondary/vocational education, giving them more responsibility as they are supervised by one youth leader. SOS mothers, village directors and psychologists carefully prepare the youngsters for this significant step towards independence.

In 1988, an SOS Primary and Secondary School for 560 pupils opened, as did an SOS Mother and Child Clinic, which cares for 30,000 patients a year. An average of 14 babies a day are born here in safe conditions with trained doctors and midwives. When the civil war broke out in 1990, SOS Children started a major medical emergency relief and food programme. The SOS School was converted into an emergency clinic where adults and children injured in the war were cared for, and the mother and child clinic became part of the emergency relief programme.  In order to provide youths in Somalia with a professional training, the SOS Vocational Training Centre in Mogadishu offers three-year and a four-state-approved training courses in nursing and midwifery.

Life in SOS Children's Villages Somalia: Ayanna's Story

When the civil war broke out in Somalia in early 1991 and a government-sponsored orphanage collapsed, Ayanna (now 25 years old) was very frightened. She became very sick and had few clothes and little food. There was no one to look after her.

Shortly afterwards, Ayanna came to live at SOS Children's Village Mogadishu. She was enrolled in the SOS School the following year. "Because I was eight years old when I came to the village, I was directly taken to grade one". Ayanna had received very little education at the government orphanage. However, she completed her primary education with us. She later went to study basic computer skills and business studies at a training centre.

In January 2004 she got a job in the outpatient department of the SOS Mother and Child Clinic. In 2006 Ayanna was married and started a new life with her own family.

While heavy fighting was in progress between government troops and insurgents around the SOS Children's Village Mogadishu, Ayanna went into labour with her first baby. She managed to pass all the roadblocks and arrived at the SOS Clinic, 24 hours into an obstructed labour. "The insecurity around the clinic prevented me from seeking medical help at the right time" she said.

Her colleagues at the clinic took her to the operating theatre for an emergency caesarean. Today she thanks SOS Children's Villages for not only taking care of her when she was in the village and the youth home but also for saving her life and that of her beautiful baby girl.