(ERGO) – Hawo Adan Shuriye, a widow with nine children, has been living a life of destitution for the last 10 months since conflict in central Somalia’s Galgadud region forced her out of her home and ruined her livelihood.
She is among 150 families eking out a living in Hanta-dher, 10 km south of her home in Hananbure, who were displaced by intense fighting between the Somali national army and forces of Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama’a.
“You can see we are sheltering under trees that we have wrapped up with clothes. We have no proper shelter here, no food. We have no one else except Allah,” she said.
Hawo lost dozens of goats when everybody including the animals ran in all directions as gunfire and explosions erupted in Hananbure last year.
She used to get two small containers of milk from her goats daily to sell making three dollars, which was enough to make a living.
“What I am now left with are four goats, I looked for the lost goats for about a month, but I have now lost hope of getting them back,” she said.
Hawo complains that there are no economic activities in this area. “People depend on animals, there are no business opportunities here.” She and her children survive on what her neighbours throw their way.
The local authorities say there are around 2,500 IDPs from the conflict-torn areas living in Hanta-dher, Balli-Lasole, Bowda-Dogore, Olol, and Lama Dayad villages all situated between 10 and 25 km from Hananbure.
Water is the main challenge facing all these villages. They are serviced by commercial tankers coming from a water source 25 kilometres away. When water arrives, it is sold at two dollars a barrel. Sometimes the roads are not safe due to threats from the warring sides and this impedes the availability of water to people in the villages.
Deko Ali Mohamed, another displaced mother of six, has lost hope of things ever returning to normal. She said that the conflict coupled with the drought is having a hugely negative impact on their ability to access their basic needs.
“There is a shortage of food and water, we also have no shelter,” she said. “I never in my life thought I would lack food for my children. There is a big difference between having three meals a day and having one meal a day.”
Deko recently took two of her few remaining animals to the livestock market for sale, but there were no buyers and eventually she brought them back home.
The residents of the villages hosting the IDPs are all in a similar economic position. “Apart from the effects of the drought, there is no one who can lend you credit, people are all equally affected,” she said.
On top of the worsening effects of the drought and conflict, Sahro Ali Hassan is worried about the lack of schools for her four children. Sahro lives now as a displaced person in Balli-Lasole, although she used to make ends meet for her family by selling meat.
With conflict still ongoing, she says has been hoping for an end to all this for about one and a half years.
“There is no work, no shop, no business, no education. On the other side there is drought and problems, and we have no proper house to shelter ourselves from the strong seasonal winds now,” Deko told Radio Ergo.
