The European Commission and the Federal and South West State government today launched a EUR 5.9 million drought response recovery programme to support 41 communities of the districts of Xudur, Qansadhere, and Buur Hakaba severely affected by the hunger crisis in South West State of Somalia.

Drought recovery and building resilience to natural disasters are a high priority in Somalia, especially now, when a severe drought is hitting the country. This year, Somalia is facing its worst drought in decades with 6.7 million people -- over half of the population in need of humanitarian assistance and recovery.

“The jointly designed project demonstrates the commitment of the EU and the government of Somalia to adopt an approach which combines a contribution to the crisis containment with a more structural and longer term support” says Veronique Lorenzo, the EU ambassador to Somalia.

“This initiative comes at a crucial time, when Somalia is still facing the drought but needs, at the same time, to start planning recovery and rebuild local economy. EU investment will make a big difference in the life of the communities of the targeted three districts now but also in the future,” highlighted Honorable Nasir Abdi Arush, the Minister of Planning and International Cooperation of South West State.

The project will be implemented by the Somalia Resilience Programme (SomReP) - a consortium of seven organisations that aims to help communities and households to protect their livelihoods over continuing shocks, by improving their resilience and increase adaptive capacities.

“We are happy to work with the government to support those displaced and farmers to get back on their feet again now and in coming years.  We want to see Somalis "survive" now and "thrive" into the future. The project will support communities to restore crops and water resources, build back assets and diversify their income sources over time,” says Andrew Lanyon, Chief of Party, Somalia Resilience Program (SomReP).

The intervention, scheduled to start early August, will respond to the priorities raised by the communities and districts: immediate income support, enhanced access to water, livelihood intensification and diversification. But it will also contribute improving risk management and disaster preparedness at community and state level.

The project is expecting to benefit 5,500 households with short term employment through cash for work which will enable the beneficiaries to gain social protection, production infrastructure rehabilitation and natural asset restoration. The natural resources base for sustainable livelihoods will be restored through rehabilitation of degraded rangeland, farmland and water infrastructure (soil bunds, sand dams, check dams, reservoirs, boreholes).

To boost the productivity of existing livelihoods, the program will endeavour to increase communities’ access to agricultural inputs, veterinary services and animal feed, improve production and marketing skills and create/strengthen markets linkages.

To diversify income sources into activities less exposed to risk of climate stress, the project will facilitate the creation of at least 130 Village Savings and Loans Associations, facilitate their connection with micro-finance institutions to further access capital beyond the group’s savings, set-up of social funds for most vulnerable community members, promote businesses start-up and self-employment, provide skills training and support apprenticeships and work placements for graduate trainees.

Other activities will involve enhancing risk management and disaster preparedness through community contingency planning by strengthening Village Development Committees and Early Warning Early Action Committees (EWEA), building capacity of the South West State government to support community EWEA Systems and disaster risk reduction plans to prepare for, monitor and respond to shocks, and for diversification in agriculture and pastoralist activities.

Finally, the project will seek to scale-up its impact by facilitating the co-financing of communities’ projects by the diaspora and the private sector.