Africa: Somalia is one of the countries most exposed to coronavirus

Somalia is currently one of the countries most vulnerable to coronavirus in Africa. High levels of poverty, ethnic struggles and floods mean that the people of this country are much more exposed to the disease than their neighbors. Aid organizations are alerting that the number of coronavirus cases can be much higher than official statistics show.

Unrest and natural disasters have caused a growing number of people who flee their homes and go to makeshift refugee camps in Somalia.

“Every day there are a lot of new people. Some of them sleep in the open air. They have nowhere to go, they don’t even have blankets, and it’s still raining, they have nothing to eat,” says Habiba, one of the Somalis from a camp in the suburbs of the capital Mogadishu.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) alerts that there is a huge risk of new coronavirus outbreaks in makeshift camps. In Somalia alone officially there are almost 2.9 thousand. cases, but Ana Maria Guzman of the ICRC says more are in practice infected.

“Due to the conflict and flooding, the number of refugees who are moving to cities is increasing, and this creates an excellent environment for the virus,” he adds.

The International Committee of the Red Cross has started disinfecting 30 camps. Further coronavirus tests are also delivered to the site.

Somalia has been in a civil war since the 1990s. The authorities are weak and real governments are carrying out militias in the country. Islamic fanatics from the Al-Shabab organization are launching attacks in the capital, because they want to seize power and introduce Islamic Sharia law into the country.

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Indicators per million inhabitants

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