It doesn't look much like the promised land. But 300 herding families walked for a month from southern Ethiopia with livestock and families, in the hope they'd find green grass - and save their lives. This harsh landscape near the border with Somalia sports scrub brush and cactus. There are a few small, dusty trees but for the most part, you have to create your own shade.
Rocky arroyos carry only a trickle of water if they have any flow at all.
It's hard to believe people would risk their lives to come here. But if you look closely you can see a fuzz of new green grass just sprouting, a result of the start of the seasonal rains. For these herders keeping their livestock alive means everything. That's why Ashe Dek Abdi Tawakal and her family came up from Gode five months ago. Ashe Dek has six living children, five of whom are still under her roof.