Malnutrition surges in southwestern Somalia | Doctors Without Borders

This nutritional crisis is unfolding alongside ongoing disease outbreaks, including measles and diphtheria. Since April 2025, MSF teams in Baidoa have treated more than 3,200 suspected measles cases, and at least 33 children have died. More than 90 percent of patients admitted had never been vaccinated. Pregnant and breastfeeding women are also arriving at health facilities anemic and malnourished. 

From January 2026 to May 2026, 11,800 children with moderate or severe acute malnutrition were admitted to MSF’s outpatient therapeutic feeding center in Baidoa. Nearly 6,000 children were in active care as of early June, and 251 pregnant and breastfeeding women have received nutrition support.

Adegey Ali, a mother of five from Gofgaduud, 18 miles from Baidoa, brought her young daughter to Bay Regional Hospital for the first time after the child had been sick for two months. “We had two years of drought, and the farm gave us nothing,” she said. “We have nothing left. My daughter was burning with fever and her body was swollen. I tried everything at home before bringing her here. It has been a year since we last received any aid or help.”