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How Trócaire is providing a safe place for women to give birth to their babies
A mother holds her new born baby in Luuq hospital, Somalia. Photo: Trócaire.
Adey Bule Aden (21) from the Haruble village in south-west Somalia was married at 17 and soon after became pregnant with her first child. Due to complications during her labour and a lack of health care services in her village, Aden’s firstborn died at nine months old.
Like many women in her village, Aden never got the chance to attend school and lived at home with her nine siblings. Due to the drought and conflict in Somalia, Aden relocated to Boyle camp for internally displaced people (IDP) in Luuq.
Aden is just one of the thousands of people who have been affected by over two decades of instability in Somalia. The country remains one of the most complex emergencies globally, as it experiences protracted conflict in addition to natural disasters such as recurrent drought, floods and cyclones. These emergencies have a devastating knock-on effect on Somalia’s economy and healthcare facilities.
Today, Somalia has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, with 692 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020. Access to skilled birth attendance and facility-based deliveries has decreased from 36 percent in 2011 to 32 percent in 2020.
More than 30 years ago, Trócaire opened the first maternity health facility in Gedo region in the south, and today runs all of the health services in Gedo which is an area slightly bigger than the size of Ireland. Trócaire is transforming the lives of more than 240,000 people each year providing nutrition and health services across five hospitals and multiple various outreach health centres. It is known fondly in the region as “the mother of health”.
Trócaire runs the health service in the Boyle IDP camp in Luqq town, where Aden gave birth to healthy baby boy. She is now expecting her third baby, which she will also deliver at the Trócaire-run hospital.
Adey Bule Aden, 21, from Boyle internally displaced persons camp in Somalia with Trócaire clinical nurse Ali Roble Hussein. Photo: Trócaire.
“I am so lucky to have delivered my second baby at the hospital run by Trócaire, where I received quality service for free,” Aden says.
“I wish my family in Haruble had the kind of health services we have in Luuq, perhaps my aunt would have survived. My aunt died of hemorrhage after giving birth to her ninth child. But it is God’s will.”
Trócaire is celebrating 50 years of working together with partners, people who we support, staff, donors and supporters to create positive and lasting change. One Day showcases the profound impact of these collective efforts, highlighting the countless “One Days” where lives have been transformed. Together, for a just world. Explore more One Day stories here. |
