# Balliad Villagers Donate Livestock for Health Centre

> Goobjoog News reported on 2016-03-15 that Balliad villagers were donating livestock to fund a maternal health centre. No later evidence confirms completion.

- By: Editorial Team, Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com/about)
- Published: 30 September 2026
- Format: News story (reported from one named public source)
- Publication: Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com)
- Subject: Infrastructure and Services
- Tags: utilities, drainage
- Web version: https://somaliconstructionreview.com/blog/balliad-villagers-donate-livestock-health-centre

## Key points

- On 2016-03-15, Goobjoog News reported that villagers in Balliad, Togdheer, were donating livestock to pay for construction costs of a maternal healthcare centre.
- The report, attributed to Radio Ergo (11 March 2016), said elders decided to lay a cornerstone, and quoted local health workers on maternal deaths.
- The report does not establish whether the centre was built, the cornerstone laid, livestock sold, or midwives assigned.

On 15 March 2016, Goobjoog News reported that the local community in Balliad, 35 km from Widhwidh town in Togdheer, was donating livestock to support the completion of a maternal healthcare centre in the area. The report, attributed to Radio Ergo (ERGO) dated 11 March 2016, said the animals would be sold for cash to pay for some of the construction costs.

The report did not state the number of animals donated, their value, or what share of construction costs they would cover. It did not name a contractor, client, funder or budget for the facility.

Local elder Hayan Ali said, according to Goobjoog News, that the community had decided to lay the cornerstone of the healthcare centre because there was no other healthcare centre where patients could be taken. The report said the facility would have four wards and that two trained midwives would be assigned there from the Widh Widh hospital.

Dr Jaama Ali Mohamed, manager of a healthcare centre in Widhwidh, said 10 women were reported to have died in childbirth in the Balliad area during the past three months. Most died of uncontrolled bleeding and other complications that local traditional midwives could not handle due to lack of skills and equipment, according to the report.

Traditional midwife Sahra Sulub said she had worked 15 years without formal training and that two women she was attending to in the past week had died due to bleeding. “Due to the lack of equipment, we are forced to use our bare hands,” she said, according to the report.

The report presented the intent to build the centre and the livestock donation as a response to maternal deaths. But it did not establish what happened after 15 March 2016. Goobjoog News has not published a follow-up confirming the cornerstone was laid, the centre was built, the livestock were sold, the midwives were assigned, or the facility is operating.

## Questions

### What did villagers in Balliad donate for the health centre?

They donated livestock to be sold for cash to pay for some construction costs, according to Goobjoog News on 2016-03-15. The report did not specify the number of animals or amount raised.

### Was the Balliad maternal health centre completed?

The Goobjoog News report from 2016-03-15 does not confirm completion. It only reported the community's intent to lay the cornerstone and fund construction through livestock donations.

## Sources

- [Balliad villagers support building material of health centre](https://en.goobjoog.com/balliad-villagers-support-building-material-of-health-centre/) — Goobjoog News, 2016-03-15