- Fathi Mohamed Ahmed
- Mogadishu
Aminu Abdi has spoken out about her addiction in hopes that it will help dispel the fear, shame and stigma surrounding the issue.
The finding of the body of a 22-year-old woman in the streets of the Somali capital, Mogadishu, last year gave way to talk about the problem of female drug addiction in the city.
Health officials said she died of an opioid overdose.
Friends of the young social media influencer said she had been injecting drugs for a long time. They said she was under the influence of drugs while recording some of her popular TikTok videos.
Police have recorded an increase in drug users in Mogadishu and elsewhere in Somalia, including among women, and have indicated that people are turning to new types of drugs.
While addicts used to chew the leaves of the khat plant despite it being prohibited, drink alcohol, sniff the gum or smoke hashish, the number of people who abuse opioids is increasing, which they inject into their bodies with needles. These include morphine, tramadol, pethidine, and codeine.
In early December, police seized a large shipment of prescription drugs, mostly opioids, at Mogadishu International Airport and arrested the importers.
“Pills and injectable drugs are especially popular among young women and girls,” said a doctor from Mogadishu, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter.
“Many of these substances are addictive and are available and can be bought without a prescription from pharmacies across the city,” he added.
image copyright Getty Images
Many addictive drugs are available and can be obtained without a prescription from pharmacies throughout Mogadishu
I started sleeping in cars.
Another common drug used by girls is chewing tobacco, known as taboo, which can cause cancer of the mouth and throat.
Aminu Abdi, 23, has been using drugs for five years. Although female drug addiction is taboo in Somalia, she decided to speak out about it to the BBC in the hope that it would help break the silence and secrecy surrounding the issue.
“I started chewing taboo with the girls I lived with,” she says.
“It had a bad effect on me. I became addicted first to tobacco, then to stronger drugs, especially tramadol and pethidine, which can be injected intravenously.”
Abdi says her drug use increased dramatically after she started having problems with her husband.
She is now divorced and lives with her young daughter.
“My ex-husband is the reason for my addiction to hard drugs. My addiction got so bad that I lost my mind, and started sleeping in cars and on the streets.”
Abdi is trying to get rid of drugs, but she says that it is very difficult to do so because there are no suitable rehabilitation centers in Somalia to manage the treatment process, and it is also impossible to stop using all kinds of drugs at the same time, according to her.
Abdi has managed to reduce her use of injectable opioids, but she still chews tobacco and smokes water pipes.
Parents in particular are very concerned about the drug problem that is spreading among their daughters, some of whom are still students at school.
image copyright Fathi Mohamed Ahmed
There are no suitable rehabilitation centers in Somalia to help people get rid of addiction
Khadigo Aden noticed that her 14-year-old daughter was behaving in an unusual way.
“She was sleeping at odd times and behaving abnormally,” says Aden.
“One day I found tramadol and chewable tobacco in her bag. I confronted her and she told me that she had started taking drugs because of peer pressure at school.”
The mother sent her daughter to a center run by clerics. The daughter stopped taking drugs because it is impossible to get her there.
Many parents send their “problem” children to such institutions, especially those with mental illnesses, those involved in crime or drugs, and those suspected of being gay.
Serious abuses occurred in some of these centers, including restraints and beatings of inmates.
Fathi Mohamed Ahmed
She was sleeping at strange times and acting out of character… I confronted her and she told me she had started taking drugs because of peer pressure”
Street children are at risk
At a time when the country is going through its worst drought in 40 years and more than three decades of conflict, Somalia’s limited resources are not enough to cover even the most basic human needs, let alone tackle problems such as drug addiction.
Some small organizations are trying to bridge the gap by spreading awareness about the dangers of drugs.
The Green Crescent Society visits schools and universities to warn students about different types of addiction, including drug use, gambling, gaming and social media.
Serad Mohamed Noor runs the Mama Ogaso Foundation, which focuses on drug use among young people, including girls.
“We are doing our best to discourage youth from using drugs by holding awareness programs that highlight the health risks associated with drug use. We are also pressuring the government to step in and do something about it, but it is not enough. Strict measures are needed to prevent this scourge from emerging.” out of control, especially among street children.
image copyright AFP
Fresh khat leaves, popular in Somalia, have a mild effect when chewed
According to the Ministry of Women and Human Rights Development, more than 40 percent of street children use drugs.
About one-fifth of all street children in Somalia are girls, and about 10 percent, are under the age of six and some are as young as three years old.
Although khat, gum and chewing tobacco are the most common and harmful substances for street children, a study conducted by the ministry found that nearly 10 percent use opioids and about 17 percent use sleeping tablets.
Increased drug use among marginalized youth has led to an increase in the number of crimes, including violence against women and girls.
According to the Somali Public Research Authority, this has also led to the recent emergence of street gangs, known as “Sial Wero”, which have been spreading terror across Mogadishu.
In some cases, drugs are used to trap women, as happened in the southwestern city of Baidoa, where a woman was reportedly raped after being given an opiate.
There is a risk that higher rates of intravenous drug use could increase the relatively low HIV prevalence in Somalia.
“The recent growth in the number of people who inject drugs, especially opioids, is putting a whole new group of Somalis at risk of contracting the virus,” says Dr.
Campaign to suppress pharmacists
image copyright Fathi Mohamed Ahmed
Pharmacies make a lot of profit selling painkillers and opioids to young people
Health professionals say one of the most effective ways to tackle the opioid problem is to target sellers, most of whom are pharmacists.
The police launched a campaign to prosecute pharmacists who sell these materials.
A pharmacist, who did not wish to be named, said he and his colleagues were not at all happy about the police intervention.
“I have been running a pharmacy in Mogadishu for many years,” he said. “It was very easy to sell medicines to young people, including girls, partly because no one knew the effects of medicines on those who took them.”
“We used to sell to everyone and made good money.”
“But the parents are now working with the police, who have started to monitor us and sometimes arrest us. We are now afraid of selling drugs to young people and losing the income from that.”
By speaking out about drug use, brave young women like Aminu Abdi and mothers like Khadigo Aden have taken the important first step in bringing this issue public.
Police intervention and drug education programs will help tackle this scourge, but without more resources and attention, the problem is unlikely to recede soon.
* Fathi Mohamed Ahmed she Rboss Edited by Bilan Media, an all-female news organization in Somalia.