# Madina Hospital solar switch-on: what the 2015 report records

> Goobjoog News reported on 2015-10-06 that solar lamps and battery storage were switched on at Mogadishu's Madina Hospital.

- By: Editorial Team, Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com/about)
- Published: 1 October 2026
- Format: News story (reported from one named public source)
- Publication: Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com)
- Subject: Engineering and Methods
- Tags: electrical-work, utilities
- Web version: https://somaliconstructionreview.com/blog/madina-hospital-solar-switch-on-2015

## Key points

- Goobjoog News reported on 2015-10-06 that solar powered lamps were installed at Madina Hospital for the first time and switched on at a ceremony.
- The report does not establish installed capacity, cost, equipment supplier or whether the installation still operates today.

On 6 October 2015, Goobjoog News reported that solar powered lamps had been installed at Madina Hospital and switched on, for the first time in the hospital's history. The same report said the hospital uses a rechargeable battery to store solar power as a backup for mains electricity, and described the work as an "illuminating project" marked at a well organised ceremony.

That is what the report establishes, and it is a narrow set of facts. It does not establish the installed capacity, the number of panels or lamps, the battery capacity, the generation output, the contract value, the funding amount, the installer or the equipment supplier. None of those figures appears in the account.

## What the director claimed

Madina Hospital's director, Mohamed Yussuf, said at the ceremony that the project was implemented by the Norway government, according to Goobjoog News. That attribution matters: the implementation role is a claim by the hospital director, not a fact the report documents with an announcement, agreement or funding record. It does not establish a signed agreement or an ongoing Norwegian programme with Somalia.

The director also said the project would protect the hospital's machines from power cuts, that machines may be affected and life-support patients put at risk when electricity goes off, and that patient welfare is the most important matter for any hospital or clinic. These are his stated expectations and his stated reasoning for the backup, made as an interested party, and they are not evidence that machine protection or improved patient outcomes have been achieved.

A person identified by Goobjoog News as Mr. Reb-bron Hens, speaking for the Norway government, said Norway is always ready to help and support Somali people and would continue implementing such projects, and that it was collaborating with the Somali government on such projects. Neither the spelling of the name nor any official title is confirmed beyond how the source printed it.

## The reported wider trend

Goobjoog News reported that hospitals and medical clinics in Mogadishu were turning to solar energy because of rising energy prices and frequent electricity blackouts, and that some medical institutions, concerned the grid was becoming increasingly unreliable and costly, were using solar installations to provide backup or as the principal power source for some machines. That is a reported trend, not verified procurement data, and the report names no institution behind it.

> **Note:** The report does not say solar is the principal power source at Madina Hospital. What it describes there is lamps plus battery storage as backup for mains electricity.

What happened after 2015-10-06 is not established here. Whether the installation was maintained, expanded, replaced or abandoned does not appear in the record, and this account makes no claim about its condition today.

## Questions

### What was switched on at Madina Hospital?

Goobjoog News reported on 2015-10-06 that solar powered lamps were installed for the first time in the hospital's history, with a rechargeable battery storing solar power as backup for mains electricity.

### How much did the Madina Hospital solar project cost?

The cost is not established. Neither the contract value nor a funding amount appears in the report.

### Who implemented the project?

Madina Hospital director Mohamed Yussuf said the illuminating project was implemented by the Norway government, as reported by Goobjoog News. That is his statement; no Norwegian government document confirming it is part of the record.

## Sources

- [Madina Hospital switches on to solar power](https://en.goobjoog.com/madina-hospital-switches-on-to-solar-power/) — Goobjoog News, 2015-10-06