COVID-19 pandemic in Somaliland
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached
Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...
in March 2020. As of 16 August 2021, there are 4703 cases and 319 deaths. 68,206
tests Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...
have been conducted.


Background

Somaliland is an unrecognized country in the
Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...
. Its diplomatic isolation has made economic development difficult and caused the healthcare system to lag behind. Yet despite that it has been successful in taking a proactive approach to the crisis. After the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 to be a global health emergency, MOHD established a National Task Force to coordinate efforts in early detection, surveillance,
risk communication Risk communication is a complex cross-disciplinary academic field that is part of risk management and related to fields like crisis communication. The goal is to make sure that targeted audiences understand how risks effect to them or their communit ...
and infection control. In addition, the president, minister of religious affairs, and minister of education all worked together on emergency response efforts. Religious authorities have used Friday sermons to disseminate information further. The cross-collaboration was key to stemming local spread and ensuring a unified response. It also serves as a model not only for the Horn of Africa, but also in the Middle East. In Iran and Iraq, after all, lack of coordination with religious authorities enabled the virus to spread broadly; Somaliland had no such disconnect. ICU beds are limited, as is other medical equipment. However, the World Health Organization does collaborate with the Somaliland government.


Timeline


March

On March 31, the Health Minister of Somaliland announced that the government confirmed the first two cases of coronavirus in Somaliland, these two people were among the three suspects who were quarantined by Ministry of Health and had their DNA sent abroad for testing. There is anecdotal evidence from villagers of a flu-like illness circulating in Somaliland from late March 2020, the likes of which they have never seen before; however, the villagers stated there were no deaths.


April

In a presidential decree due to coronavirus fears, Muse Bihi Abdi ordered the state
Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
to release 574 inmates throughout Somaliland territories. The first five confirmed cases were reported by 20 April. The following week one more case was confirmed.


May to August

By 18 May there had been 121 confirmed cases and nine deaths. Ten days later the total numbers were 225 confirmed cases and 16 deaths.


September to December

By mid-September there had been 934 confirmed cases and 31 deaths. By 25 October, there had been 1077 confirmed cases and 36 deaths. By 15 December there had been more than 1200 confirmed cases and 42 deaths.


January to March

By 8 February there had been 1430 confirmed cases. By 26 February the number of confirmed cases had grown to 1603.


Prevention

Minister of Health
Omar Ali Abdillahi Omar Ali Abdillahi ( so, Cumar Cali Cabdillaahi) is a Somali politician. He was appointed as the Minister of Health of Somaliland on 14 April 2019. See also * Peace, Unity, and Development Party * Ministry of Health (Somaliland) * List of Soma ...
created a National Task Force to respond to the pandemic. Schools and office-based businesses were closed, social events and gatherings prohibited, and flights and travel restricted. The government issued guidelines effective for one month starting from 19 March 2020.
Khat Khat or qat ( ''ch’at''; Oromo: ''Jimaa'', so, qaad, khaad, khat or chat, ar, القات ''al-qāt'') is a flowering plant native to eastern and southern Africa. Khat contains the alkaloid cathinone, a stimulant, which is said to cause e ...
chewing establishments were ordered closed, and special guidance was issued for mosques. An initial government decision to close mosques for four weeks was rescinded after pressure from religious leaders. Entry was banned for flights and people from
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, Iran, Italy, France, Kenya, Somalia, South Korea, and Spain. However, flights to and from Ethiopia continued at
Egal International Airport Egal International Airport (), ( so, Madaarka Caalamiga a ee Cigaal ar, مطار هرجيسا إيغال الدولية) is an airport in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, named after Somaliland's second president Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Eg ...
in Hargeisa, as Somaliland's only link to the rest of the world. In April 2020, the Hargeisa municipality evicted 289 households from the Gobanimo Market and
26 June District 26 June District ( so, Degmada 26 June) is a district in Hargeisa, Somaliland. It is one of the eight administrative districts of Hargeisa City. June 26 is the date of independence of British Somaliland as the State of Somaliland in 1960. See ...
to enforce social distancing measures in congested areas. On 20 May, the Ministry of Education and Science announced that the end-of-year academic examinations for students from grades 1 to 11 would be cancelled, with those students instead evaluated on their performance in the last three terms, but that the secondary school final examination of July 2020 would proceed as planned with preventive measures taken.https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/FGS%20FMS%20directives_Update%205%20final_eo%204.pdf The health ministry has taken steps to educate the public about the virus. President Muse Bihi Abdi pardoned 574 prisoners and ordered them released, in order to control the spread of the virus. On 31 January 2022, Somaliland received 150,000 doses of MVC COVID-19 vaccine donation from Taiwan.


Reception

American historian
Michael Rubin Michael Rubin (born 1971) is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). He previously worked as an official at the Pentagon, where he dealt with issues relating to the Middle East, and as political adviser to the Coalition Provis ...
praised Somaliland's effectiveness in controlling the virus despite its diplomatic isolation and lack of international assistance, drawing a comparison with the COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan.


See also

* COVID-19 pandemic in Africa * COVID-19 pandemic by country and territory


References

{{Portal bar, Somaliland, Viruses, Current events, COVID-19 2022 in Somaliland Coronavirus pandemic Coronavirus pandemic
Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...
Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...
Disease outbreaks in Somaliland