Tuesday August 4, 2026
Mogadishu (HOL) — Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi Irro has ordered that kidney dialysis services be provided free of charge following complaints from patients over inadequate treatment and rising medical costs.
According to a statement issued Monday by the Somaliland Presidency, Irro also instructed the Ministry of Health to immediately procure 15 new dialysis machines to expand treatment capacity and reduce pressure on existing equipment at Hargeisa General Hospital.
The directives followed the president's recent visit to Hargeisa General Hospital, where he met hospital administrators, health workers and dialysis patients to hear firsthand accounts of the challenges facing the facility.
As part of the government's response, Irro appointed a technical committee to conduct a comprehensive assessment of Hargeisa General Hospital and regional hospitals providing kidney care.
The committee has been tasked with reviewing hospital management, health services, medical equipment, infrastructure and patient care before submitting recommendations on both immediate interventions and long-term reforms.
The presidency said the measures form part of the government's broader effort to improve healthcare services and strengthen public health infrastructure.
The announcement comes days after dozens of kidney disease patients staged a protest in Hargeisa, saying they faced high costs for medicines and dialysis supplies, shortages of functioning dialysis machines, overcrowding and long delays in receiving treatment.
Patients warned that the lack of adequate services had disrupted their regular dialysis schedules, placing many lives at risk.
The government's latest measures appear to address the protesters' key demands, although it remains unclear when the additional dialysis machines will be delivered and when the expanded free services will be fully implemented.
