This week’s 5 minutes of fame post is a blend of reflections from different moments and themes from Asia—please pardon the combination, as each carries its own weight and urgency. During my recent return journey from Hyderabad, see here, here, here, here and here from my early morning walks. I also had the chance to spend a day in Singapore, reconnecting with old university friends. True to tradition, I visited the iconic Kinokuniya bookstore and made time for the National Museum. In the spirit of sharing meaningful insights, I’ve attached the video clip below for my fellow Somalis—especially those aspiring to leadership and public service. The words of the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who led Singapore through a difficult separation from Malaysia into disciplined prosperity, remain powerfully relevant.
During a recent two-week visit to Asia, where I attended a technology conference in Hyderabad, I encountered a growing and deeply troubling phenomenon: the increasing number of Somali nationals seeking medical treatment abroad. My interactions with Somali patients in Hyderabad shed light on a sobering reality—one that reflects the persistent and multifaceted failures of Somalia’s domestic healthcare system. These individuals, many of whom had travelled under conditions of economic and emotional distress, are driven by the urgent need for medical care that remains inaccessible or unreliable within Somalia’s borders.
The testimonies I gathered reveal a systemic crisis. Patients repeatedly cited the chronic underfunding of public hospitals, the lack of essential diagnostic equipment, unsanitary clinical environments, and the absence of qualified medical personnel. They also expressed concern over the unregulated nature of the private sector, which many view as being driven more by profit than by patient safety. For many, these structural deficiencies leave little choice but to seek care in countries such as India, Türkiye, and Thailand among others, despite the financial burden, bureaucratic complexity, and linguistic challenges involved.
Ironically, the Indian healthcare industry refers to these individuals as “medical tourists,” often assuming a level of affluence that does not reflect the lived reality of most Somali patients. In truth, these are not affluent clients seeking luxury services, but rather individuals undertaking medical journeys out of desperation. Their presence in foreign healthcare systems is less an indication of choice than of systemic neglect at home. Global medical tourism markets, particularly in South Asia and the Middle East, have rapidly expanded to cater to such populations. Yet, these markets often perpetuate and capitalize on the very inequalities that drive patients to them.
The increasing number of Somali nationals travelling abroad for medical treatment presents a poignant illustration of global health inequities. While medical tourism is often framed in terms of consumer choice and mobility, in the case of Somalia, it is more accurately characterized by desperation than agency. There is an urgent need for structural reform, regulatory oversight, and sustained investment in Somalia’s health infrastructure. Without such interventions, the nation’s engagement in global medical networks will remain exploitative and uneven, benefiting external markets while continuing to marginalize its own people.
The compounded issues observed during my recent travels in Asia—ranging from the emotionally charged testimonies of Somali medical patients in Hyderabad to reflections on leadership from the legacy of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew—underscore a central and urgent imperative: the rebuilding of Somalia must be both systemic and diasporically driven. The stark realities of Somalia’s failing healthcare system, where citizens are compelled to seek treatment abroad under considerable duress, reveal a profound structural neglect that cannot be remedied by ad hoc efforts or foreign dependency. This persistent medical exodus is symptomatic of deeper institutional decay, not only in public health but across governance, infrastructure, and social trust. It is here that the Somali diaspora, particularly its educated and professionally established elites, must confront a moral and strategic calling. If the late Lee Kuan Yew's transformative vision for Singapore teaches anything, it is that disciplined leadership, anchored in long-term planning and national accountability, can redirect the course of a nation—even one emerging from fragmentation. For Somalia, a comparable renaissance requires the diaspora’s return—not merely in remittances, but in knowledge, governance, and the will to reconstruct vital institutions. Without this committed re-engagement, Somalia’s participation in global systems—from health to trade—will remain extractive and disempowering. Rebuilding Somalia, then, is not a symbolic aspiration; it is a historical necessity demanding immediate and coordinated action from its most capable sons and daughters.
Comments and feedback are, as ever, welcome (yes, even the brutally honest ones). Next week, we will revisit the ever-entertaining saga of dollarization—and unpacking the curious case of Trump and Musk’s sudden, if baffling, affection for Somalia. Buckle up and stay tuned!
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