Farmers’ Livelihoods Decimated By Somalia’s Recent Droughts

Aug 04, 2023

Approximately half of all households in Somalia are headed by women, and women are disproportionately suffering from the country’s compounding challenges of climate change, conflict and food shortages.

Agriculture and livestock provide a livelihood for vast numbers of Somalis, including many women. Yet for many pastoralists (sheep and cattle farmers) the recent failed rainy seasons have decimated their sole source of income.

Ibada, a 54-year-old mother of 7 children, lives in the Sharaf-weyn village of Awdal region in western Somaliland. Ibada had been responsible for 100 goats, enabling her to earn a secure living, but Somalia’s prolonged drought meant she became unable to feed or provide water for her goats.

Ibada watched helplessly in distress as, 1 by 1, her goats died. Without them, she had no means to provide for her family.

Increasing resilience through climate-smart agriculture

Islamic Relief’s Strengthening Agricultural Resilience (SARIA) project aims to increase resilience among livestock farmers. The project is designed to address the challenges of recurring drought and food insecurity in Somalia by supplying farmers with productive livestock and implementing climate-smart agriculture techniques to better protect them against the impacts of climate change.

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Video: Season 7, Episode 1: Managing Risk and Seeing Opportunities in U.S. Pork Production

Today’s episode features three guests discussing the similarities and differences between pork production in the United States and Brazil, along with strategies for managing risk in today’s industry while recognizing and acting on opportunities. First, Dr. Anne Caroline de Lara, executive manager of live pig production at Seara Alimentos, a JBS company in Brazil, is joined by Dr. Matthew Turner, head of operations for JBS Live Pork. Together, they discuss how labor, climate and ventilation challenges vary between Brazil and the United States, while underscoring their shared commitment to raising healthy pigs. They also point to lessons producers in both countries can take from one another’s systems and on-farm experiences. Then, Brady Reicks, risk manager at Reicks View Farms, shares his perspective on risk management, drawing from his background in markets and his transition into farming. He discusses how protecting margins varies by operation and offers practical approaches producers can use to make marketing and business decisions with greater confidence rather than hesitation.

Both conversations were recorded at recent industry events focused on swine livability, including the International Conference on Pig Livability and Iowa Swine Day.