As part of the OML-MENA fellowship, supported by NELIS Global, an Agro-Pastoralism Caravan Raising Awareness was conducted in December 2024. The initiative aimed to address the increasing vulnerability of Somali pastoralist communities to climate change. The “Roob Raac” (“Rain Followers”), Somalia’s traditional pastoralist communities, are facing severe challenges due to climate change.

During the awareness-raising caravan in the Nugal region, Puntland, Somalia, OML-MENA champions and fellows engaged with grassroots herder communities to discuss the impact of rising temperatures on their lives and survival. Through these discussions, it became evident that the communities are experiencing extreme weather conditions, including recurrent droughts, water scarcity, and pasture degradation, which have led to severe livestock losses and displacement of pastoralist families.

The pastoralist communities highlighted that many households lost their livestock during the 2022 droughts, which followed five consecutive years of non-seasonal rains. The participants affirmed that their lives as pastoralists have drastically changed due to new and unfamiliar scenarios, including unpredictable and shortened rainfall seasons, as well as recurrent droughts leading to water scarcity.

It became clear that the pastoralist communities had limited knowledge about climate change, often perceiving it as divine punishment rather than a result of human actions. This lack of understanding has forced many pastoralists to abandon their traditional nomadic practices, leading to displacement into urban areas as an Internally Displaced Persons, further jeopardizing their way of life.

Through the caravan’s awareness-raising activities, information was shared with pastoralists about climate change and its impacts on their communities. They were also empowered with adaptive strategies, including agro-pastoral practices, to secure water and pasture during droughts.

The pastoral communities acknowledged that they lacked effective adaptation mechanisms to cope with recurrent droughts, rising temperatures, and water scarcity. Their only option has been to migrate to areas with available water and pasture, often resulting in further livestock losses and cultural abandonment as they move to urban areas. The caravan’s initiatives focused on enhancing resilience through knowledge dissemination, fostering market linkages, and promoting agro-pastoral adaptation strategies. Visual aids such as posters and illustrations were used to communicate these strategies, emphasizing the importance of preserving cultural heritage while adapting to the challenges posed by climate change.