By Hafsa Mursal
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was on Monday whisked away at Afisyoni tent in the heavily fortified Halane camp.
This is following an outbreak of fire that was reportedly caused by electric fault.
President Mohamud was taking part in the National Educational conference which centred on enhancing quality education in the country.
Deputy Prime Minister Salah Jamaa was also among senior government officials evacuated from the place.
For the attainment of multiple national goals: the establishment of viable democratic state, a sustainable economy, regional and global competitiveness having a sound educational policy and investment in the sector is a foundational prerequisite. pic.twitter.com/DotygGvbn1
— Salah Jama (@SalahJama) March 13, 2023
The scene of the fire was a hall at the Afisyoni tent near the airport in Mogadishu, where a large conference was held to discuss the development of education and its challenges.
The Minister of Education of Somalia, Farah Abdulkadir, described the fire as part of the situation and the lack of knowledge in the country, saying that the country situation will soon be better. No casualties were reported in the fire. It is also not known what had caused the fire.
The National Education Conference with the theme of “Transforming Society through Relevant & Quality Education” has commenced. It brought together education stakeholders & our valuable international partners to shape the future of #Somali education & leave no one behind #NEC2023 pic.twitter.com/akGud3R2e6
— Farah Sheikh Abdulkadir (@faaraxsheekh) March 13, 2023
It was a few days ago when a fire broke out at the Martini hospital, which extensively damaged the facility and injured several people.
The former deputy governor of Banadir region, Ali Yare Ali accused the electricity service companies of being responsible for this problem, saying that they deserve to be held accountable.
The meeting, which was suspended for several hours, resumed after the fire that broke out in some part of the meeting hall was extinguished.
The President and other officials who were previously removed from the tent had returned, and the speeches of the leaders who participated in the meeting continued.
President Mohamud delivered key note speech where he emphasized on his government’s commitment to improving the education by recruiting and training at least 10,000 teachers in the next four years.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xlx2VboBGdw[/embedyt]
Somalia’s educational sector has been at the dogs for the last three decades after the outbreak of the civil war in the country.
The sector is grappling with myriad of challenges including lack of qualified teachers, and inadequate resources.
The United Nations data shows approximately 3 million of Somalia’s 5 million children are out of school due to several factors.
