Expanding Health Coverage in Eyl, Puntland

The Puntland World Vision team began the New Year with the inauguration of three health facilities in Eyl district, Puntland State.  World Vision’s Country Director, Simon Nyabwengi was in attendance along with members from World Vision’s TB and Primary Health Care programming and implementation teams. Eyl is a sparsely populated coastal district located five hours along extremely rough roads from Garowe town, capital of the Puntland State of Somalia.  Until 2011, humanitarian agencies were largely absent from Eyl as the area was insecure being a hideout for pirates. Since then, the Puntland Government has re-established control of the area and World Vision was the first international NGO to establish operations there, starting with WFP-supported Target Supplementary Feeding Program (TSFP) providing support to malnourished children.  

Over the years, World Vision has expanded the scope of programming to include food security, food assistance, TB, primary health care and vocational training through several donors including Irish Aid, WFP, FAO, Global Fund and World Vision Hong Kong.  Moreo¬ver, through Global Fund TB and SomReP consortiums, World Vision has  been helping other INGOs establish roots in Eyl dis¬trict, with both Muslim Aid and Action Contra La Faim (ACF) now implementing TB control and resilience programming re¬spectively.  “World Vision cannot meet every need alone and encourages partners and collaborators to help us improve the lives of children in Eyl district in whatever way they can,” says Simon Nyabwengi, World Vision Somalia’s Country Director. World Vision hopes to use its institutional size to extend its programs to isolated communities where government and other NGOs have challenges reaching. 

During the recent inauguration of the health facilities, World Vision, UNICEF and distinguished members from the Ministry of Health made the long trek across rugged roads and down dry river beds through Nugal region to Dhigale village.  Dhigale town is a pastoral community, located alongside a seasonal river in the heart of Eyl district.  This is one of least accessible communities in Puntland. The ceremony started off with speeches from community leaders, district, and regional government officials.  Cali Malax, Village Elder for Dhigale town, starting of the speeches, noted, “If I were to say everything World Vision did I would be here till sunset.” He went on to detail the various World Vision projects implemented over the past two years, including WFP and FAO supported cash-based and food-based assets rehabilitation and agricultural extension projects, several water point constructions, emergency nutrition, and most recently primary health care.  He was particularly thankful to World Vision for targeting the Dhigale Heath Post and upgrading it to a Health Center through the construction of a three-room maternity ward, emergency, pharmacy, cold-chain and store rooms.   The newly upgraded Dhigale Health center will provide support to 15,000 community members by providing immunization to children under-five and pregnant mothers, ANC/PNC and delivery service, and treatment of common diseases. Mr. Malax concluded by noting that the maintenance of the Health Center was “the work of the Dighale community and not the work of World Vision,” and encouraged the staff members to take up their duties with professionalism and dedication 

Thanks to Irish Aid, World Vision has been able to not only support the upgrading of the Dhigale Health Center, but is providing temporary incentives to six staff members, including three qualified nurses, one community midwife and two auxiliary nurses.   Bashan Hassan, World Vision’s Health Officer, noted the close working relationship between the Ministry of Health and World Vision, highlighting the role the government has played in equipping the facility with beds and cabinets and providing refresher trainings to health care staff members.  In the years to come, Dhigale Health Center will grow as there are plans to include TB programming in the location and embed it more firmly with the Ministry of Health’s network of primary health care facilities for Eyl district.  to say everything World Vision did I would be here till sunset.” He went on to detail the various World Vision projects implemented over the past two years, including WFP and FAO supported cash-based and food-based assets rehabilitation and agricultural extension projects, several water point constructions, emergency nutrition, and most recently primary health care.  He was particularly thankful to World Vision for targeting the Dhigale Heath Post and upgrading it to a Health Center through the construction of a three-room maternity ward, emergency, pharmacy, cold-chain and store rooms.   The newly upgraded Dhigale Health center will provide support to 15,000 community members by providing immunization to children under-five and pregnant mothers, ANC/PNC and delivery service, and treatment of common diseases. Mr. Malax concluded by noting that the maintenance of the Health Center was “the work of the Dighale community and not the work of World Vision,” and encouraged the staff members to take up their duties with professionalism and dedication

Simon Nyabwengi, National Director World Vision provided concluding remarks and handed over the keys to the facility to Eyl District’s Minister of Parliament, Liban Abdullahi Abdi and central Ministry of Health staff members.  Mr. Nyabwengi recounted how reliable health services in his home village in Kenya had helped him overcome a bout of malaria when he was a child and expressed his hope that the Dhigale leaders and the staff members would commit themselves to ensuring every child in their village could enjoy similar access if they found themselves under similar circumstance.