MOGADISHU: Diphtheria cases and deaths have risen sharply this year in Somalia, where the response has been curtailed by vaccine shortages and US aid cuts, Somali officials said.
More than 1,600 cases, including 87 deaths, have been recorded, up from 838 cases and 56 deaths in all of 2024, said Hussein Abdukar Muhidin, the general director of Somalia’s National Institute of Health.
Diphtheria, a bacterial disease that causes swollen glands, breathing problems and fever and mostly affects children, is preventable with a vaccine that became widely available in the mid-20th century.
Childhood immunization rates in Somalia have improved over the past decade, but hundreds of thousands of children are still not fully vaccinated.
After fleeing fighting between government forces and Islamist militants in the central Somalia town of Ceeldheere three months ago, all four of Deka Mohamed Ali’s children, none of whom was vaccinated, contracted diphtheria. Her 9-year-old daughter recovered, but her 8-year-old son died and two toddlers are now being treated at a hospital in the capital Mogadishu.
“My children got sick and I just stayed at home because I did not know it was diphtheria,” she told Reuters from the bedside of her 3-year-old son Musa Abdullahi whose throat was swollen to the size of a lemon from the infection.
Health Minister Ali Hajji Adam said the government had struggled to procure enough vaccines due to a global shortage and that US aid cuts were making it difficult to distribute the doses it had.
Before President Donald Trump cut most foreign assistance earlier this year, the United States was the leading humanitarian donor to Somalia, whose health budget is almost entirely funded by donors.
“The US aid cut terribly affected the health funds it used to provide to Somalia. Many health centers closed. Mobile vaccination teams that took vaccines to remote areas lost funding and now do not work,” said Adam.
Muhidin separately echoed his comments about the closures.
Overall US foreign assistance commitments to Somalia stand at $149 million for the fiscal year that ends on September 30, compared with $765 million in the previous fiscal year, according to US government statistics.
“The United States continues to provide lifesaving foreign assistance in Somalia,” a US State Department spokesperson said when asked about the impact of its aid cuts in the country.
“America is the most generous nation in the world, and we urge other nations to dramatically increase their humanitarian efforts.”
Aid group Save the Children said last month that the closure of hundreds of health clinics in Somalia this year due to foreign cuts has contributed to a doubling in the number of combined cases of diphtheria, measles, whooping cough, cholera and severe respiratory infections since mid-April.
Besides the US, Britain, France, Germany and other major Western donors are also cutting aid budgets.
Somalia’s government has also faced criticism from doctors and human rights activists for its limited funding of the health sector. In 2024, it allocated 4.8 percent of its budget to health, down from 8.5 percent the previous year, Amnesty International said.
The health ministry did not respond to a question about that criticism. It has said it is planning to launch a vaccination drive but has not given details when.
Somalia faces diphtheria surge amid vaccine shortages and aid cuts
Somalia faces diphtheria surge amid vaccine shortages and aid cuts
- Diphtheria, a bacterial disease that causes swollen glands, breathing problems and fever and mostly affects children, is preventable with a widely available vaccine
- More than 1,600 cases, including 87 deaths, have been recorded, up from 838 cases and 56 deaths in all of 2024
Louvre Museum closed as workers launch rolling strike
- After the memo, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a massive renovation plan for the museum, expected to cost €700 million to €800 million (up to $940 million)
PARIS: The Louvre closed its doors to thousands of disappointed visitors on Monday as staff launched a rolling strike to protest working conditions at the Paris landmark, two months after a shocking robbery.
Staff assembled outside the museum’s world-famous glass pyramid, blocking the main entrance and holding signs, as security agents turned tourists away.
“The Louvre on strike,” said a banner.
FASTFACTS
• Staff assembled outside the museum’s world-famous glass pyramid, blocking the main entrance and holding signs, as security agents turned tourists away.
• The Louvre has become a symbol of so-called ‘over-tourism,’ with the 30,000 daily visitors facing what unions call an ‘obstacle course’ of hazards. course’ of hazards.
“All together all together,” striking staff shouted. “Who does the Louvre belong to? To us!“
Workers are demanding extra staff and measures to tackle overcrowding, adding to the woes of the world’s most visited museum just as France gears up for the Christmas holidays.
“We are angry,” Elize Muller, a security guard, told reporters. “We disagree with the way the Louvre has been managed.”
The strike comes nearly two months after the museum was victim of an embarrassing daylight heist that saw crown jewels worth $102 million stolen.
A notice in the museum’s courtyard said the Louvre would remain closed on Monday.
At a general meeting, around 400 employees voted unanimously to launch a strike, which can be renewed, to protest the “deterioration” of working conditions, the CGT and CFDT unions said.
Another general meeting was scheduled to take place Wednesday. The museum is closed on Tuesdays.
“I’m very disappointed, because the Louvre was the main reason for our visit in Paris, because we wanted to see the ‘Mona Lisa’,” said 37-year-old Minsoo Kim, who had traveled from Seoul with his wife for their honeymoon.
Natalia Brown, a 28-year-old tourist from London, said she understands “why they’re doing it,” but called it “unfortunate timing for us.”
Rachel Adams, a 60-year-old real estate agent from Utah, said she had heard of the plans to strike.
“I think that the Louvre makes a lot of money and they should be handling their finances quite a bit better. They had the big water leak. I mean, this is important stuff.”
Speaking on the eve of the action, Christian Galani, from the hard-left CGT union, said the strike would have broad support across the museum’s 2,200-strong workforce.
“We’re going to have a lot more strikers than usual,” Galani said.
“Normally, it’s front-of-house and security staff. This time, there are scientists, documentarians, collections managers, even curators and colleagues in the workshops telling us they plan to go on strike.”
All have different grievances, adding up to a picture of staff discontent inside the institution, just as it finds itself in a harsh public spotlight following the shocking robbery on Oct. 19.
Reception and security staff complain they are understaffed and required to manage vast flows of people, with the home of Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” welcoming several million people beyond its planned capacity each year.
A spontaneous walk-out protest in June led the museum to temporarily close.
The Louvre has become a symbol of so-called “over-tourism,” with the 30,000 daily visitors facing what unions call an “obstacle course” of hazards, long queues, and sub-standard toilets and catering.
Documentarians and curators are increasingly horrified by the state of disrepair inside the former royal palace, with a recent water leak and the closure of a gallery due to structural problems underlining the difficulties.
“The building is not in a good state,” chief Louvre architect Francois Chatillon admitted in front of lawmakers last month.
Under-fire Louvre boss Laurence des Cars, who faces persistent calls to resign, warned the government in January in a widely publicized memo about leaks, overheating and the declining visitor experience.
After the memo, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a massive renovation plan for the museum, expected to cost €700 million to €800 million (up to $940 million).
Questions continue to swirl since the break-in over whether it was avoidable and why the national treasure appeared to be poorly protected.
Two intruders used a portable extendable ladder to access the gallery containing the crown jewels, cutting through a glass door with angle grinders in front of startled visitors before stealing eight priceless items.
Investigations have since revealed that only one security camera was working outside when they struck, that guards in the control room did not have enough screens to watch the coverage in real time, and that police were initially misdirected.
