In a remarkable defiance of the odds, Farhiya Hussein Ali, a resident of Mogadishu, has given birth to quadruplets at the Benadir Hospital, marking the second time in less than two months the hospital has overseen such a rare occurrence.
This extraordinary birth follows closely on the heels of another remarkable event at the same hospital. In late March, Mariam Mohamed Hassan also delivered quadruplets, making these multiple births a testament to the strength of Somali women.
The chances of giving birth to quadruplets are incredibly slim, happening in only 1 in 700,000 pregnancies. Twins make up the majority of multiple births, constituting 90% of all cases, leaving the remaining 10% for triplets, quadruplets, and higher multiples.
Ali, who relocated from Jalaqsi in the Hiiraan region to Mogadishu seven years ago, and her newborns are in good health, as confirmed by Benadir Hospital’s doctors.
Multiple births, while exceptional, are more likely when there’s a family history, often attributed to a genetic predisposition towards hyperovulation. Somalia has seen several instances of such remarkable births. In 2012, Halima Mohamed, an internally displaced mother, gave birth to quadruplets. An even rarer event was celebrated in 2020 when a quintuplet birth occurred at Mogadishu’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Training and Research Hospital.
As Mogadishu once again celebrates the birth of quadruplets, the medical team at Benadir Hospital has issued a heartfelt appeal to the public to extend their support to Ali.
