(ERGO) – More than 10,000 pastoralist families are estimated to have been displaced from Adakibir, Dhumodle, Marsamage, Qalanqal, Galxagagare and other villages after the boreholes and water catchments were destroyed in an attack by Al-Shabab militia.
These families migrated to Dhaglul, Dhagahdher, Kamasle, and Ardo villages near Adado in Galgadud region, where they are facing severe food and water shortage.
Sahro Adan Mohamed, a disabled mother of nine, fled to Dhagahdher village with her children, 45 km north-west of Dhumodle. They have been sleeping under a tree for five days. Her youngest child is less a year old.
“At night we sleep in the open, and in the day time we rest under the trees. The nights are cold and windy. We had our homes and our water pump to get us water, all that has disappeared,” she said.
Sahro and her family fled for their safety from their two-roomed house with whatever they could carry. She left her 50 goats that provided them with a daily income of $3 from milk sales. They were not able to receive the $100 they usually get monthly from relatives because of lack of network in the area.
Hawa Ibrahim Ali moved to Ardo, 25 km from their home in Adakibir. They now have to get water from reservoirs where a barrel costs $4. They have been taking water on credit and have already racked up a bill of $40. Hawa, a mother of seven, wanted to settle where they could find cheap water but they could not travel any further. She used to sell meat in the market but cannot find any work in Ardo.
“The conflict began when we were sleeping at around 3am with loud explosions. We thought it was an air strike due to its violent nature. In the morning when we woke up, there was another explosion at the water well. Everyone fled and there was no network in the area to communicate. We moved to this bare land where we live now,” she said.
Around 1,500 displaced families in Ardo rely on food from local villagers. Each resident family is helping four to five other families.
Abdi Ali Mohamud, 100 years old, was forced to flee his house in Adakibir where he lived for 50 years. He now lives under a tree withered by the drought that affords him little protection from sun or cold.
“I am 100 years old and I crawled under this tree,” he said. “If I stay hungry I could easily die. I was seated when we were told that we would have to flee by car, we are in a bad situation.”
Abdi said they cannot move to a city as the rent would be unaffordable.
The deputy commissioner of Bahdo district, Ahmed Salad Sheikh Abdullahi Warsame, told Radio Ergo that they have tried assessing the villages where displaced families have arrived but their capacity is stretched. More people have fled the conflict than those who fled the drought.
Telecommunications have been cut by Al-Shabab militias making response more difficult.
“It’s hard to get exact numbers since the phones were cut. We have been moving around the people for five to six days and it’s hard to get exact numbers,” he stated.
