Heroes of the city: Medical students in Somalia lead efforts to contain Coronavirus pandemic

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Amid growing concerns over the Coronavirus pandemic whose global statistics of infection stand at 335,157 cases and 14,600 deaths, nations are fighting hard to keep this unpredictable virus at bay.

 In Africa, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports about 1,184 infection cases and 12 deaths. Somalia is among the least affected countries with only one reported case. The once war torn country has geared itself to fight the virus and on the forefront are medical students from Salaam University in Somalia capital Mogadishu.

Student-led initiative

The Federal Government of Somalia announced a raft of measures in the wake of the coronavirus epidemic. It announced the closure of learning institutions for fifteen days and the cancellation of big gatherings among other measures.

The more than 30 medical students are putting their days into good use by getting trained about detection and prevention of the epidemic. In return, they are expected to create social awareness about the detection, spread and prevention of the virus amongst the student population and the community. You will find them in the community educating hundreds of  internally displaced persons in camps about the signs and symptoms of the disease as well as how to keep themselves safe from the virus or contain it in case of infection. The students have also been trained on how to assist qualified personnel at the forefront of the fight against the pandemic.

Love and service for country

"The students are doing it out of love for their country and want to be useful at this critical moment," Says Mohamed Salad one of the leaders of the National Union of Somali University Students.

Though faced by shortage of testing kits and basic protective supplies the students are determined to create  safe spaces for their communities.

Watch the video below of Najma Mohammed Nur, a medical student educating internally displaced persons about the Coronavirus epidemic.
Note that translation is required for readers who do not understand the language.

The University plans to replicate this student-led initiative to its satelitte campuses to serve all federal states.

Salaam University is a private institution situated at the center of Mogadishu in Hodan District. It was founded in 2009 to train local doctors, health workers, local business men and administrators.

The university is living to its mission of becoming the leading academic institution in Somalia and building a "Perfect Future" for its graduates and the nation.