Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Mogadiscio (Agenzia Fides) - One year after the contribution made by Pope Benedict XVI from the collection taken up at Holy Thursday Mass in 2007 (see Fides 2/4/2007), this outpatient facility run by Caritas Somalia has increased its service up to almost 170 patients a day. In an average month, the center serves more than 4,000 patients. According to information sent to Agenzia Fides by Caritas Somalia, the medical dispensary is a point of reference for people across all Somalia, a country that has been without an effective central administration since 1991.
“It is normal for people to travel up to 75 km to receive the care,” say workers from Caritas Somalia. According to Davide Bernocchi, the director of Caritas Somalia, the health center’s work shows that it is possible to operate among the Somalis, improve their welfare and meet their basic needs with limited resources. “We are glad that the Pope remembered the people of Somalia, it is a sign of love and solidarity for one of the smallest and most fragile churches in the world, at the service of some of the poorest people on earth,” he said.
Among the most common ailments in the region are upper respiratory tract infections, like tonsillitis, bronchitis, rhinitis and the common cold, which mostly advances to the potentially deadly pneumonia due to delays in seeking treatment.
Recently, the spread of Kala-azar has led Caritas to appeal for more help. Kala-azar (Leishmaniasis) is parasitic illness contracted after being bitten by sand flies, and is more commonly known as pappataci. Kala-azar symptoms include fever, diarrhea, coughing, drop in red and white blood-cell counts, enlarged spleen, headaches, muscle loss and a protruding stomach. It is a common disease in Somalia. Kala-azar affects mostly children and young people.
Working with technical support from Caritas USA (Catholic Relief Services/CRS) and Merlin, the Caritas Somalia health center has been able to offer specialized treatment to many people with Kala-azar. In addition to the treatment, the dispensary also offers its patients food supply, as many come from remote areas and the families are unable to bring them food. Grace Kyeyune, the UNICEF Chief of Field Office in Central and Southern regions of Somalia says that, “the Caritas clinic is a model that we are asking other local medical centers to emulate, their organization and efficiency is an example of what it means to serve in a war zone with scarce resources.”
But the center is not the only presence of members of the Caritas family. Other arms of Caritas have been present in Somalia even during the most difficult times. From the beginning of the civil war in 1991, Caritas Somalia itself has never stopped operating from inside Somalia directly or through partners. Caritas Switzerland and Caritas Ireland (Trócaire) have been operational for the last 13 years, respectively in the northern region of Hargeisa and in Gedo, in the South. The Catholic organization works with an ecumenical spirit and a spirit of interreligious dialogue, cooperating with other Christian and Islamic charitable organizations.
“We believe that the very cooperation between an Islamic and Christian organization is an important message of dialogue and peace, particularly in the Somali environment, so marked by animosity among different identities, but also in the broader international context,” the head of Caritas Somalia concluded. (LM) (Agenzia Fides; righe 43, parole 549)
