Development and Peace – Caritas Canada and Trócaire are implementing an agriculture and livelihoods project in the Dollow District, Gedo Region of Somalia.
Dollow District is a major transit point from Somalia to Ethiopia, with many internally displaced persons (IDPs) passing through the district. Like many parts of Somalia, Dollow District has been affected by climate-change induced disasters, including the El Niño floods experienced in late 2023 that significantly impacted the local economy and food systems, leading to crop losses and increased prices. Market dynamics are also volatile due to competition from Ethiopian crops and natural disasters, compounded by poor road access, and inadequate support for small-scale farmers. A recent assessment found that 41% of the households were food insecure, with 24.8% employing severe strategies such as begging and selling household items. IDPs were the most affected, with over half (57.6%) experiencing food insecurity, including 29.2% in emergency status.
The project will promote sustainable livelihoods and improve food and nutrition security for marginalized IDPs and host communities through training farmers on agroecology, providing farm inputs, rehabilitating irrigation infrastructure and rangelands through cash for work, livelihood training, savings and loans groups, gender awareness, and addressing seed supply issues. There will be 2,586 participants from households with up to 15,516 members.