Rural poverty in Somalia
Who and where are Somalia’s rural poor people?
The regions that have established autonomy and experienced relatively peaceful conditions — Somaliland in the north-west and Puntland in the north-east — have achieved a greater degree of stability than the rest of the country. The southern part of the country, where conflict has raged for more than 15 years, is inevitably poorer and in a more critical situation regarding food security, infrastructure and services.
Social groups that were already vulnerable prior to the 1990s have been further marginalized by the conflict and general instability. In particular indigenous groups and ethnic minorities have fallen into greater poverty, and many have been expelled from their traditional lands.
Women have particularly low status in Somalia. Many are illiterate or poorly educated, and they have inadequate access to health and family planning services. Female genital mutilation is widespread. The country has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world. Every day about 45 women die as a result of pregnancy and childbirth.
Why are they poor?
Somalia does not abound in resources and depends heavily on agriculture to sustain its economy. Agricultural productivity is often at the mercy of climatic extremes, including periodic droughts and flooding. In 2006 floods in parts of southern and central Somalia caused widespread devastation, destroying food stores, cutting off access to food supplies and contaminating water supplies and sanitation facilities.
Livestock is essential to the economy. Over 60 per cent of the population depends directly on livestock for food and income. Outbreaks of disease frequently go unchecked and untreated as a result of the lack of an effective disease control strategy. Over the last decade Saudi Arabia has imposed several livestock bans because of disease concerns, and these have severely hampered the sector and generated serious problems for the pastoralists whose livelihoods depend upon the sale of livestock.
Large stocks of animals put considerable pressure on grazing land, causing land degradation and generating disputes over land rights. In the absence of regulatory measures, competition over resources, especially land and water, is a major component of the current conflict.
Qat addiction among the population has become a real problem. Excessive chewing of qat leaves leads to listlessness and disinterest in family and work: It reduces productivity and leads farmers to abandon animal husbandry.
Conflict and instability aggravate poverty
More than 15 years without an effective central government and a chaotic state of ongoing civil conflict and lawlessness have had a devastating effect on the country's population and the resources they depend upon for their survival.
Extreme poverty has become widespread and large numbers of people are unable to meet basic food requirements. Many Somalis have been internally displaced, often from rural to urban areas. The strongest clans have taken over valuable agricultural land, expelling weaker clans and indigenous peoples from their traditional lands. Vulnerable people have lost their assets and livelihoods. Famine and disease have raged unchecked, causing the death of about one million people. Extensive damage to roads and other infrastructure makes it extremely difficult to deliver humanitarian assistance to those who need it.
Extended civil conflict has had a direct or indirect impact on many resources, but competition for access to some resources has also been and continues to be a source of conflict itself. In the absence of a central government and regulation, many traditional forms of natural resource management have been abandoned, leading to unsustainable exploitation. For example, overgrazing and uncontrolled harvesting of trees to make charcoal in parts of the north-west and the Kismayo area have led to environmental degradation that may be difficult to reverse. Un-regulated off-shore fishing threatens marine resources.
Somalia faces a number of major obstacles to development: civil conflict, the lack of a fully functioning central government, and natural calamities such as drought and floods. In addition, the ongoing armed struggle has often prevented much-needed humanitarian assistance from reaching the population. Poverty has inevitably increased since the early 1990s and the collapse of the government and onset of civil war. About 43 per cent of the population lives in extreme poverty, or on less than US$1 per day. This figure rises to 53 per cent in rural areas, where extreme poverty is more prevalent.
Health indicators for the population have shown a decline since 1991, an inevitable consequence of the collapse of public services and destruction of infrastructure. Child survival improved after the famine of the early 1990s, but is still low and has deteriorated since the end of the 1990s. Malnutrition continues to be prevalent throughout the country.
Who and where are Somalia’s rural poor people?
The regions that have established autonomy and experienced relatively peaceful conditions — Somaliland in the north-west and Puntland in the north-east — have achieved a greater degree of stability than the rest of the country. The southern part of the country, where conflict has raged for more than 15 years, is inevitably poorer and in a more critical situation regarding food security, infrastructure and services.
Social groups that were already vulnerable prior to the 1990s have been further marginalized by the conflict and general instability. In particular indigenous groups and ethnic minorities have fallen into greater poverty, and many have been expelled from their traditional lands.
Women have particularly low status in Somalia. Many are illiterate or poorly educated, and they have inadequate access to health and family planning services. Female genital mutilation is widespread. The country has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world. Every day about 45 women die as a result of pregnancy and childbirth.
Why are they poor?
Somalia does not abound in resources and depends heavily on agriculture to sustain its economy. Agricultural productivity is often at the mercy of climatic extremes, including periodic droughts and flooding. In 2006 floods in parts of southern and central Somalia caused widespread devastation, destroying food stores, cutting off access to food supplies and contaminating water supplies and sanitation facilities.
Livestock is essential to the economy. Over 60 per cent of the population depends directly on livestock for food and income. Outbreaks of disease frequently go unchecked and untreated as a result of the lack of an effective disease control strategy. Over the last decade Saudi Arabia has imposed several livestock bans because of disease concerns, and these have severely hampered the sector and generated serious problems for the pastoralists whose livelihoods depend upon the sale of livestock.
Large stocks of animals put considerable pressure on grazing land, causing land degradation and generating disputes over land rights. In the absence of regulatory measures, competition over resources, especially land and water, is a major component of the current conflict.
Qat addiction among the population has become a real problem. Excessive chewing of qat leaves leads to listlessness and disinterest in family and work: It reduces productivity and leads farmers to abandon animal husbandry.
Conflict and instability aggravate poverty
More than 15 years without an effective central government and a chaotic state of ongoing civil conflict and lawlessness have had a devastating effect on the country's population and the resources they depend upon for their survival.
Extreme poverty has become widespread and large numbers of people are unable to meet basic food requirements. Many Somalis have been internally displaced, often from rural to urban areas. The strongest clans have taken over valuable agricultural land, expelling weaker clans and indigenous peoples from their traditional lands. Vulnerable people have lost their assets and livelihoods. Famine and disease have raged unchecked, causing the death of about one million people. Extensive damage to roads and other infrastructure makes it extremely difficult to deliver humanitarian assistance to those who need it.
Extended civil conflict has had a direct or indirect impact on many resources, but competition for access to some resources has also been and continues to be a source of conflict itself. In the absence of a central government and regulation, many traditional forms of natural resource management have been abandoned, leading to unsustainable exploitation. For example, overgrazing and uncontrolled harvesting of trees to make charcoal in parts of the north-west and the Kismayo area have led to environmental degradation that may be difficult to reverse. Un-regulated off-shore fishing threatens marine resources.
Source: IFAD
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