(ERGO) – Farah Ali Omar, a pastoralist living in Ada-kibir district in central Somalia’s Galgadud region, is caught between the dual stresses of extreme drought and deadly conflict.
Trying to keep his 120 goats and 80 camels alive with little water or fodder, he tried to herd them late last year towards Qayib village, where there is rich grazing after rainfall. But Qayib is also an active battleground between Somali government forces and Al-Shabab.
About 80 of his goats and 25 camels disappeared into the conflict zone, 70 kilometres east of Adado.
He had to bring the rest of his herd back to Magyoolay village, where there is nothing for them to eat and he worries how he can keep them going.
“We halter the livestock at night but sometimes they leave their young ones. They go roaming off looking for food because they are hungry. It is hard to guard them,” he said.
“We can’t go anywhere as the conflict is still going on in areas where there is grazing land.”
Magyoolay was itself a centre of fighting some time ago and Farah’s small cafeteria there was destroyed. It had provided some source of income for his family of 11 children during this time when the livestock are weak due to two missed rainy seasons.
The Galmudug state authorities estimate that there are around 5,000 families from Magyoolay, Maygagag-duub, Laan-Mareer, Ardo and Ali-wayd areas facing similar difficulties, with some of their animals caught up in areas of fighting.
Another pastoralist, Hashi Ali Mohamed, and his family of nine people migrated from far off Burdir village with his 160 goats and two camels trying to reach Qayib to access the good grazing he had heard about there.
However, due to the conflict he could only get as far as Laan-mareer, where he had to stop despite the lack of resources.
“There has been a challenge and the people cannot return to their villages. It forced people to stay in one area and that is not good for the drought-hit livestock. The fodder is little and the livestock are many,” he explained.
He says he is spending a lot of money buying water to keep his livestock alive, even though he cannot sell them.
“The people in rural areas get income from livestock sales and there is no market now. We take water on credit now, in a day we spend four to six dollars, and we cannot afford that money,” he said.
His family were given 20 kgs of flour, rice and sugar by his relatives who run businesses in Adado. They now eat twice a day, but he does not know how he will repay his debts.
The director of Galmudug livestock ministry, Dr Suleiman Mohamed Salah, told Radio Ergo that they are planning to relocate the pastoralists caught in these areas to better grazing grounds to save the livestock.
However, he noted that the plans might take time and the pastoralists need to be patient. He also warned them to stay away from conflict-torn areas until the government declares it safe.
“What we are trying to save is lives, the areas have land mines and people could die. They could also lose their livestock. So the pastoralists need to avoid these areas, even if there is good grazing there,” he stated.
He also added that they are looking for trying to recover the livestock that have wandered into the conflict zones.
