Month: January 2022

Somalia has a regularly faced food crises since the climate change had affected seasonal rain and the lifestyle of the nomadic people; analyzing the root causes of the regular food crises based on hypotheses and assumptions may we come up with the following issues; Long outstanding armed conflicts and lack of functional government institutions including social support systems.

Climate change – the developed countries and industrials production had a negative impact on climate change that has caused droughts and famine where the expected rainfall never comes into the reality.

Here is why Somalia’s food crisis is getting worse and the country is facing a widespread famine because of the Ukraine conflicts, Somalia has been in conflicts, droughts, and poor lifestyle for so many years but this time is getting worse because the country has been survived depending on Aid food while has a poverty rate of 73% according to UNDP statistics;  food donations come from International community efforts and mainly from Ukraine but now as a result of the war on Ukraine no shipments is expected to come from Ukraine as the ports are closed, here is the Question where the people who depend on food aid will access food? The number who depend on food aid will go beyond half of Somalia’s population who lived in the country? 73% of the population who are under the poverty line can’t afford to get food hence the prices rapidly doubled.

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Also because Ukraine conflicts Somalia is no more a priority to receive support and donations hence the international support mainly from EU countries has needed to place into the Ukraine issue;

Therefore, as Somalia has been majorly depending on food donations and funding from the international communities through aid organizations including the international and United nation’s organizations its becoming more challenge as another bigger crises come about in the world whereby international community are more focusing and placing resource in Ukraine conflicts and this will lead to widespread famine, hanger and raises internal conflicts and insecurity in the country; so far according to  UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian affairs Somalia (UNCHA) that the required funding to Somalia only 3.2% for its humanitarian response received as the United Nations projects that 4.6 million people in Somalia will no access to enough food in mid of 2022; this indicates that negative impact on Ukraine conflict in Somalia and the aid funding is extremely delayed and may diverted in to the Ukraine as Ukraine requires massive attention from the international community and supports needed in Somalia is going to be forgetting.

However, the humanitarian crises and emergency situation in Ukraine can’t be overlooked and ignored but having one eye to see only one situation and forgetting others is outrageous, all humankind deserves to provide support when it’s needed, the attention is given in to Somalia and the lack of fund and aid to Somalia will lead widespread farming where millions of people will lose their life because of hunger and famine caused diseases, hence the greater of the international community are completely unaware of a horrible situation that Somali people are facing and the Ware of Ukraine doesn’t allow UN to send Aid food to Somalia as it had in previous years and through this way aid food is extremely decreased and the food in the country is extremal expensive where the majority of Somali community can’t afford daily meals.

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In conclusion, to suggest assumption on untimely solution of the food scarcity, hunger and food crises in Somalia, we need to understand that more than 60% of Somalia papulations of nomadic pastoralism and engaged in livestock in a nomadic way of life and their survivor is depending on traditional raining seasons, and adapted to a nomadic way of life, limited feed resources and intermittent water supply. The pastoral system is confined to the drier areas of the coastal plains and mountain valleys over most of the country where the principal if not the only feed resource is rangeland grazing and browse although crop residues are also an important component of total feed in some areas.

The words rob raac in Somali translate to rain follower. It is a term commonly used in pastoralist circles that refers to the lifestyle of moving from one place to another with one’s livestock in search of pasture and water. This lifestyle is shared by many pastoralists, who make up 60 percent of Somalia’s population. Failed consecutive rains in the country, though, have prolonged a debilitating dry spell, grinding to a halt a way of life for many nomads who roam the lands, and now the conflict in Ukraine worsening the situations; Without anticipatory preventive approaches, these factors are likely to exacerbate existing vulnerabilities and reduce the people’s livelihood options, economics and increase the extreme poverty in the country.

Therefore, the agro-pastoralists idea for forming a small scale sheep and goats farming is to reduce the pastoral community’s vulnerability to the adverse impacts of climate change and tackle food crises  in Somalia, and by changing the life style of nomadic pastoralism whereby the sheep and goats in Somalia are kept under traditional extensive systems, so to secure food production and reduce the hunger and adapt the climate change, the initiative if performing small scale farming for livestock (Goats and Ships, plus camels), where Somali nomadic people an 60% of the population who depending on livestock to adapt agro-pastoralists approach and be a friend and create opportunity with food crises an world conflict, and equip with knowledge of a better management and access to water resources for securing enough food production.

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Sharmarke Yusuf
Peace and Development Activists
Rotary Peace fellow
Email: sharmuu55@gmail.com