Hamida*, 29, is a mother of five children ranging from four months to seven years old. She is grateful to Allah that her entire family survived the relentless dry season in Ethiopia’s Somali region. However, they face a desperate struggle to survive after losing most of their livestock—their only source of income.
With no options left, Hamida and her family fled their small village in the Somali region about six years ago escaping a drought that killed most of their livestock. After walking for more than five hours, they arrived at a makeshift camp for temporary settlers on the outskirts of a nearby rural town, far from their original home. They have lived there ever since.
Following the failed rainy season known as Dayr, in October to December, most areas in the Somali region experienced severe drought, causing an acute shortage of water and pasture. This led to significant food insecurity among communities, forcing many families to leave their homes and travel to nearby small towns in hopes of receiving support from the government and humanitarian agencies.
As part of its emergency humanitarian assistance through the internal Humanitarian Fund (HF), Save the Children is on the ground providing lifesaving assistance to families most impacted by the dry season through the distribution of food and non-food items. To date, the organization has reached over 1,200 households, approximately more than 7,200 individuals.
Strong quotes
“Just five days ago, I lost two newborn goats. If support is delayed any further, we will lose the few animals we have left.”
“This assistance arrived at a critical time. It means we can provide our children with enough to eat and avoid spending money on food, allowing us to save for other needs.”
“I hope that all my children live through these hardships, go on to receive a high level of education, and become successful in life.”
How is Save the Children helping (or did we help) that child or family
Save the Children provided lifesaving assistance to Hamida’s* family, through the distribution of food and essential non-food items.
Interviewee’s story in their own words (Quotes):
My name is Hamida, I am 29 years old, and I am a mother of five. Before settling here, we lived in a remote village far away. We raised livestock to make a living; our animals were our only source of sustenance. We would sell them at the local market and use the money to buy food. We never grew crops there.
About six years ago, almost all our animals died because there was no pasture or water left for them to survive. With limited options, we gathered the few remaining animals and possessions and left our home. We walked for more than five hours to get here. Ever since we arrived, we have been living here with the small assistance provided by the government and humanitarian agencies.
Now, the area is experiencing failed rains again. This has caused a severe shortage of water for both our families and our livestock. The little pasture that was available has deteriorated significantly, and now our animals have started to die. Just five days ago, I lost two newborn goats. If support is delayed any further, we will lose the few animals we have left.
Today, we received support from Save the Children that includes both food and non-food items: 25 kg of rice, three litres of cooking oil, five kg of lentils, four sachets of salt, two water jerricans, and two bars of washing soap.
This assistance arrived at a critical time. With Ramadan beginning in just a few days, this food is essential. It means we can provide our children with enough to eat and avoid spending money on food, allowing us to save for other needs.
Currently, our priority needs are water for both our families and our livestock. The other major problem here is the shortage of animal feed, which we need to save our core breeding animals and sustain their lives.
These days, what worries me most is that if the next rainy season doesn't bring as much rain as the last one, I'm afraid the problems will be even more devastating for us. Insha'Allah, the next rains will come on time, the water points will be replenished, and we'll have enough pasture for our livestock.
We are so grateful to Save the Children for the support they have given us so far. We would now like to appeal for more urgent help, especially with water and animal feed. I hope they will pay closer attention to what we are going through and continue standing with us until things get better here.
I hope that all my children live through these hardships, go on to receive a high level of education, and become successful in life. I pray to Allah to grant us enough rain to replenish the dry water points and to grow enough pasture for our animals.
The relief items, comprising non-food items (NFIs) and food supplies, have been prepared for dispatch to pre-identified beneficiaries. Recipients were selected through a community-participatory and transparent assessment process. At the distribution point, each recipient verifies receipt by fingerprinting the item registration form, a process overseen by the targeting committee before beneficiaries collect their entitlements. Seifu Asseged / Save the Children
Project Background
According to the recent Dayr seasonal rainfall assessment conducted by multisectoral agencies led by the regional government, rainfall conditions across many parts of the region were either failed or erratic. The season was characterized by a late onset and an early cessation, with most areas receiving below-average rainfall. As a result, the region is now highly impacted as it enters the extended Jilaal dry season (January to April).
Findings from the joint assessment indicate that 82 woredas across the region require emergency water trucking, with approximately 210,325 households (or 1.26 million individuals) in need of life-saving water supply.
According to the assessment findings, an estimated 4,551,413 metric tons of livestock feed (forage) will be required over the next three months to sustain approximately 17,185,632 head of core breeding livestock.
Save the Children has deployed its humanitarian staff to respond to the ongoing situation in Ethiopia’s Somali region by providing essential non-food items, basic food supplies, and other critical support to affected communities.
In addition to distributing emergency food and non-food items, the organization is supporting health services to conduct mass malnutrition screenings for children under five, as well as for pregnant and lactating women.
These screenings aim to assess malnutrition levels and guide targeted interventions to address the needs identified. As part of the screening process, children received deworming treatment and vitamin A supplements.
Moreover, Save the Children distributed dignity kits to over 100 adolescent girls and carried out mass hygiene campaigns that reached more than 2,100 community members. However, this assistance represents only a drop in the ocean, as only 1,200 households were reached out of an estimated over 4,000 households in need of immediate aid.
