The volunteers include new medical university graduates,
nurses form the country’s biggest hospitals and volunteers from Somali Red
Crescent society.
The workshop was the last of several trainings as part of
the preparations for a FIFA level medical course due in the country before the end
of the year, according to Somali Football Federation Secretary General Mr. Abdi
Qani Said Arab who addressed at the conclusion ceremony on Thursday afternoon.
Mr. Arab indicated that football is beautiful and public
game which encourages health and physical fitness and for that reason the Somali
Football Federation was committed to strengthening the medical involvement in
football anywhere in the war-torn country.
"Rather than practicing sports medicine at our
competitions or trainings, we want to be
engaged in medical awareness moves against malaria and other killer diseases
through football medical campaign and you are the ones whom we expect to carry
such strong healthy messages” Secretary General Abdi Qanbi Said Arab told the
trainees during his conclusion speech Thursday.
"As you know in my opening remarks I promised that we are
going to establish our own ambulance services and provide you with full medical
equipment—I am once again repeating that SFF is committed to implementing such
sector” Mr. Arab noted adding that Somali Football Federation was fully happy
with the offer from dozens of participants who pledged to voluntarily work at
local football events across the country.
He said that for the past two decades Somali Football
Federation had a key role in reconciliation and peace building through football
for peace tournaments across the country and after learning from the successful
past history, now the SFF was going to play such big role in maintaining good
health among people adding that the protection of environment through football environmental
care awareness games was also another important role for the SFF to play.
The trainees themselves have fully lauded for the secretary
General’s speech which they said was encouraging them to increase their
involvement in football which is the most populous sport in Somalia where an
estimation of 95% of the people including olds and young are football addicts.
"On behalf of the trainees I want to thank Somali
Football Federation for giving us such great opportunity, we graduated from
medical universities in the country, but I confirm that we have learned what we
didn’t know before and that is because the sports medicine was something new to
us” Muniro Ali Hassan told the closing ceremony Thursday.
She was one of 28 volunteers who pledged they will voluntarily
work with Somali Football federation during the closing ceremony Thursday.
"As my sister told here before me, I am confirming that
we are committed to doing such volunteer work, because we have felt the
sweetness of football which I can describe as the people’s game” added Ismahan
Mohamed Ahmed one of the female trainees who offered to voluntarily work with
SFF.
"We are asking Somali Football Federation to suddenly
create connections between us and the clubs here in the country, because we
want to help them and practice what we have learned from here” another trainee Bashir
Hassan Farah adding that they also want to help referees and national team
members during training sessions.
Course director Dr. Abdullahi Hussein a high profile sports
medicine expert praised his students’ commitment to the training, time keeping
and top discipline during training adding that the participation was also full
than expected and over time hours of learning were taken.
"The trainees asked me for additional courses and I
promised them other courses on the behalf of Somali Football federation, the lessons
we have given them include FIFA +11, F-Marc programs, anti doping control and
other important lessons—rather than the general medicine we have really
implemented here the messages we had taken from FIFA and CAF medical courses
and meetings” course director Dr. Abdullahi Hussein told the closing ceremony.
Before announcing the closure of the training Somali
Football Federation President Ali Said Guled Roble said he was very jubilant at
the top participation of the course and the commitment of the trainees who were
asking their instructors frequent questions during the two day-long workshop.
The president accentuated that his federation was taking
seriously the demands from the trainees toward the holding of additional
courses and he emphasised Dr. Hussein’s pledges to do more sports medicine courses
in the near future.
"Once again I send
my particular thanks and gratefulness to our medical experts, the course
director Surgeon doctor Abdullahi Hussein and his assistant Dr Khalif Yusuf
Sabriye, a specialist in orthopaedics—I can really describe them as ‘heroes’
who devoted their time and energy to the promotion of a professional sports
medicine through football” the president noted before announcing the closure of
the training workshop.
Somali Football Federation Media Department
Email:somalifootballmedia@gmail.com