The demand for water in our daily living is undebatable. A report by the UNOCHA states that more than 3.9 million people cannot access enough safe water for domestic use in Somalia. Water scarcity in Somalia because of the protracted drought has severely affected pastoralist livelihoods with over 3 million livestock dead. The affected households are also facing other multiple challenges of loss of household income, increased food insecurity, acute malnutrition among children, increased prevalence of diseases, separation of families and loss of educational opportunities for their children. The search for water and food is leading to the increase in displaced persons arriving in various IDP camps in need of humanitarian support.
NAPAD Response
In response to the needs of the drought affected IDPs and Non IDPs in the Elwak district, Nomadic Assistance for Peace and Development (NAPAD) in partnership with Somalia Humanitarian Fund (SHF) is implementing a project whose objective is to improve immediate access to food and protection of livestock for vulnerable households in Elwak. NAPAD is providing emergency water through water trucking to over 6000 emaciated shoats in the Oktober, Madina, and Elbanda villages of Elwak District. The shoats access the water from temporary watering troughs constructed by NAPAD.
Issack Qaloya’s household- a resident of Elbanda, is one of the 200 households benefiting from the livelihoods’ protection project and a beneficiary of the emergency water trucking intervention providing life-saving water to his shoats. The main shallow well at Elbanda had already dried up and he had to seek alternative sources of water for his livestock. Issak would travel 5 Kms every day to and fro a shallow well in a neighbouring village with his emaciated livestock to access water.
Issak reports that with the provision of emergency water trucking, he has more time to look for other ways to provide for his family since he does not have to walk to the next village in search of water.
“We had to walk for 5 km with our animals to get water when the shallow well at our village dried up, but now, the watering troughs are close to us, and we have water for our livestock.” A delighted Issak Qaloya Reports.
Many shallow wells have dried up and many more vulnerable require the provision of life-saving water for their livelihoods, their shoats, cattle, and camels. Such as that of Issak requires the urgent provision of life-saving water for their domestic and livestock use, until their villages receive adequate rainfall.