Villagers rejoice Maternal Health center building
100 years after its first settlement, villagers in Wado-Baris (54
kilometers southwest of Hargeisa the capital of Somaliland) celebrated
the construction of the first MCH building.
Halimo Mohamoud, a mother of six from the outskirts of Wado Baris,
conveyed her emotions about the MCH project, saying that it is “a
fantastic project for the villagers who hail here and the villages
around it, because nearest health care centers were in the north 54km
(Hargeisa the capital) and 85km in the south deep in Ethiopia.”
Wado-Bariis was founded in the mid-nineteenth century to service
commerce caravans traveling between Somaliland seaports and eastern
Ethiopia. But it lost its importance throughout the early years of
20th century in connection to the world wars and the latter wars
between Somalis and Ethiopians later on that century.
The village has more than 481 households and it is the center of 14
villages in both sides of the border between Somaliland and Ethiopia.
Beside wado-Baris villagers this MCH will also serve other villages
around it. To increase the population’s access to healthcare in Wado
Baris and 14 other nearby communities on both sides of the border, the
MCH will employ more than 14 people, including midwives and other
health professionals.” Hamdi Ibrahim, the chairman of MSG foundation,
(local foundation funded by Mohamed Saeed Geedi, (a Somaliland tycoon
of the, who MSG group of companies, which invested the project.
Wado-Baris MCH project will decrease the problem of health access in
the remote villages of Somaliland’s Marodi-Jeh region.
“the Marodi Jeh regional office would like to the MSG foundation for
the construction of Maternal and child health center in Wado-Baris
village of Faraweyne District” Said. Abdi-Aziz Omar Muse, Marodi-Jeh
co-ordinator Somaliland’s Ministry of Health development “this project
will assure maternal/child care and other health services for the
villages around it in Somaliland and even beyond the border of
Ethiopia villages” He added
A recent survey by Pharo foundation indicates that most of the
villagers in in Marodi jeh region of Somaliland has no access of any
health services. “The average population size was 481 households, with
most villages having a population smaller than 1000 households. Almost
all villages had one centre rather than multiple centres” said in the
summary of the survey.