ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH IMPLICATIONS ON SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT IN SOMALIA
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Abstract
For more than three decades, Somalia has indeed been afflicted by violent conflicts and unrest, and its been without the need for an effective centralized administration since the early 1990s. Water shortages and over flow of seasonal rivers continue to harm the both livestock and agricultural farming land of the region, claiming lives and destroying livelihoods. And over a millions Somalis have been domestically dislocated, with another million migrating to neighboring nations in search of food, water, and shelter (UNHCR, 2012). In world politics, the global economy, and people's lives, the environment is extremely important. Environmental deterioration has now become a global problem that demands a global response - ecologically, economically, and politically. Waste management is a worldwide problem that most governments are working to resolve, Individuals' and the environment's health are at risk when garbage is inadequately managed. As a developing country, Somalia's communities have faced several issues in terms of trash management as a result of waste management initiatives.
Aims and objectives to ascertain the influence of environmental health on Somalia's solid waste management this was a descriptive research project. Self-administered Questionnaire (N=50) and interviews with persons living in Somalia. The questionnaire was written in English, but it was translated into Somali for those who could not speak English or were not educated. The data was collected using SPSS, which was then utilized to evaluate the findings using charts and graphs. The educational level of the respondents was about 30 (60 percent), while the master's degree was 15(30 percent), the PHD degrees were estimated 3 (6%), the secondary level and non-formal education were calculated 1(2 percent), 82 %, of respondents have excellent knowledge that waste has more hazards or risks that cause environmental problems, while 18 percent have poor knowledge that waste may cause environmental risks, and 70% of respondents have perfect experience that waste pollutes the environment, while 30% have less knowledge.
As a result, 80 percent of respondents stated that waste can be resourced, and 82 percent stated that waste can also be restored and recycled; however, the lowest percentages of respondents stated that waste cannot be stored or recycled, with 18 percent and 20 percent stating that waste cannot be resourced, respectively. 74 percent of respondents strongly agreed that chemical and poor water quality have a direct impact on the environment and can cause a variety of maladies that can be severe or moderate, 58 percent of respondents stated that inadequate sanitation and poor water quality can cause environmental issues such as diarrhea outbreaks, and around 50 percent of respondents stated that company's chemical radiation, such as UV radiation, has a high impact on cancer incidence.