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Brief Analysis
Among the calls to Radio Ergo’s audience feedback platform in the period 6-17 February 2025, there was a notable concentration of callers talking about worsening drought and its impact, especially in parts of Galmudug state. Other notable locations were Sanag and parts of Puntland. Overall, the callers on the main theme of drought, water shortage, and food insecurity indicated an intensification of negative impacts on their own lives and on the health of their livestock. Most of those calling wanted aid or assistance of some sort. Note, that our call-in platform was offline due to technical issues for a few days within the period included in this report. The following summarises the calls by theme.
Aid – a caller in an unspecified location in Puntland said they used to get food and cash aid from WFP and had not received anything this month, they wondered why. A caller in Galmegag, Galgadud region, said they were facing drought and water shortage and were appealing for help. He added that they had not received the aid they were registered for by CARE in February. Another caller in Galmegag called on CARE to register them, saying they were drought-stricken and used to get aid from aid organisations but it had been a year since they had received anything. Another in Galgadud said they used to get $60 through the Bahnano safety net programme, but hadn’t He said they were facing severe drought and water shortage and were desperate for help. A caller in Garowe, Nugal region, said Garowe they were short of food and hadn’t had a meal for two days. He appealed for urgent aid.
Conflict – several called from Sanag, especially Erigabo, saying conflict was affecting them. One caller said they were pastoralists, whose camels and cows had been affected by drought with the situation aggravated by clan conflicts in the region. In Puntland, a caller said they had been attacked by ISIS and there had been airstrikes in the area. He said they had been displaced by this conflict were appealing for help.
Health - in Gedo region, a caller said they were facing severe drought and there was an outbreak of watery diarrhoea in the. He added that their livestock were dying of water shortage and they were appealing for help.
Education – a female caller in Dusamareb, Galmudug, said they were in need of schools in their area.
Locusts – several callers in Sanag complained that swarms of locusts had descended on their areas destroying the vegetation, and they also lacked water. They asked for help particularly in dealing with the locusts.
Drought and water shortage – in the north, several callers in Togdher region complained of facing drought and water shortage, as well as livestock being sick. Two of them wanted more weather forecasts concerning the ‘Gu seasons to be broadcast. In Sanag, a caller in Erigabo said they had lost 300 goats to the drought and had migrated to the city. They were appealing for help. Another in Somaliland asked for the government to help as livestock were becoming weak. Among many callers from parts of Galgadud region, a caller in Abudwak said they were concerned about water and fodder shortage, and had migrated in search of resources but had to come back. Another female caller said they were short of wate rand food. In Adado, some callers asked aid organisations to reach them. A female caller in Dusamareb said their goats were dying. A caller in El-Meygag said they couldn’t remember the last time they had rain and were praying for it. There were similar calls also from Gelinsor, Gideys, and Guriel. Further south, there were a few callers from Middle and Lower Shabelle and Bay regions mentioning drought hardship. Other did not specify their locations, such as a female caller who said 90 of their goats had died due to lack of water and fodder.
Livestock – several callers wanted help over livestock diseases, some of which were combined with stress due to drought and acute water scarcity.
Agriculture – several farmers connected with Radio Ergo’s weekly farming programme by sending questions to the experts. A caller in Bardera, Gedo region, said he was among a group of young farmers who needed advise and help in established a committee to represent small farmers to advance their business.