Mother’s 3-Day Walk with Sick Daughter Highlights Somalia’s Child Malnutrition Emergency
Aid groups say 1.92 million Somali children need treatment as funding cuts and flooding leave families with fewer options for care.
- On Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026, Halima Abdullahi Ibrahim arrived at Kismayo Referral Hospital after carrying her 3-year-old daughter, Asho Hassan Abdi, for three days; doctors diagnosed the child with edema, a symptom of severe acute malnutrition.
- Somalia faces a national emergency with 1.92 million children aged 6 months to 5 years expected to suffer from acute malnutrition through June 2027, including 433,000 facing severe acute malnutrition carrying greatest risk of death.
- At Kismayo's Luglow settlement, home to more than 250,000 people, displacement and reduced assistance worsen conditions. Jubbaland Health Minister Ismail Garas reported the hospital admitted 152 children with severe acute malnutrition in August, four of whom died.
- Sweden's ambassador to Somalia, Hans Henric Lundquist, and UNICEF Somalia representative Sandra Lattouf visited local nutrition centers to assess the crisis. "We need to build resilience, because globally there is lack of funding," Lundquist said.
- Ali Adan Ali, Jubbaland's commissioner for refugees, warned that expected flooding along the Juba River could force more families toward Kismayo, while many displaced families have received no humanitarian assistance since 2023.
15 Articles
15 Articles
The Toronto Star
Mother’s 3-day walk with sick daughter highlights Somalia’s child malnutrition emergency
KISMAYO, Somalia (AP) — For three days, Halima Abdullahi Ibrahim carried her 3-year-old daughter from their village in Somalia to a hospital nearly 90 kilometers (56 miles) away. The girl's body was swelling and she needed medical help unavailable closer…
Correio da Manhã
sabado.ptHalima Abdullahi Ibrahim walked for three days with her three-year-old daughter in her lap until arriving at a hospital in Kismayo, Somalia, where the child was treated for malnutrition. The case illustrates the humanitarian crisis in the country, where almost two million children suffer or are at risk of acute malnutrition.
For three days she carried her three-year-old daughter in her arms, traveling almost 90 kilometers from their village in Somalia to a hospital, seeking medical help for her child. Little Aso Hassan Abdi had swelling in her body due to malnutrition and needed care that was not available near their home. When ... More www.ertnews.gr
Halima Abdullah Ibrahim carried her three-year-old daughter in her arms for three days to reach a hospital in Somalia, about 90 kilometers from her village. The girl’s body was swelling and she needed treatment, which was not available closer to home. When Halima finally reached Kismayo Referral Hospital, her daughter Ashu Hassan Abdi was taken to a special ward. The white-walled ward was lined with rows of iron beds, some of which were cover…
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