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Until the beginning of 1991, Somalia had a reasonable health care system with a good number of tertiary hospitals in Mogadishu and Hargeisa, some regional hospitals, district hospitals, clinics, child and mother health centres (CMH) and out-patient dispensaries. However, the conflict resulting from the civil war has destroyed the public health care system which existed in the country.

Somalia was not alone in having conflicts. The total number of conflicts in the world in 2017 was 49, many of them have now entered post-conflict phases, where open warfare has come to an end.  There is growing evidence that conflict has a devastating impact on health systems and the health status of the population.

In Somalia, the post-conflict phase provides a unique window of opportunity for health sector development and reform. At this juncture, health systems in Somalia face the double burden of a flawed pre-conflict health system, characterised by deficiencies and inequities, and the long-term impact of conflict on the health status of the population and its resultant strain on the health system.

This review article analyses the framework for the rehabilitation of health systems in post-conflict countries. Such knowledge can be  applied in the rehabilitation and development of health systems in Somalia along the lines of the World Health Organization’s health system building blocks.

The impact of conflict on the health status of the population as well as the health system can be catastrophic and be felt for years after the State has entered the post-conflict phase, but also provides an opportunity for reforms of the affected State’s health sector.