Episode 9: Edna Adan Ismail: The Mother of Somaliland
You’ve heard about Somalia. But what about Somaliland, a self-declared sovereign state which broke away and declared its independence thirty years ago?
Often labeled as the MOTHER OF SOMALILAND, Today’s guest is a living legend who’s left an indelible mark on her home country.
After growing up in British Somaliland at a time when girls weren’t educated, Edna Adan Ismail trained to become her country’s first qualified nurse-midwife. But she didn’t stop there - Edna went on to open a maternity hospital in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, where she works to combat the country’s high rates of maternal and infant mortality.
As if that weren’t enough, Edna also served as the only female minister in the Somaliland government, advocating fearlessly for women and children.
She’s made it her life’s goal to put an end to female genital mutilation, which over 99% of women aged 15-49 in Somalia and Somaliland undergo.
There’s no end to the list of achievements this woman has completed against all odds. In our conversation, she shares everything from her father’s words that inspired her career, why she chose to sleep in a construction site while her hospital was being built, and what makes Somaliland such a uniquely beautiful country.
