Improved access to food and protection of livelihoods for drought affected host communities in Beletweyne, Hiiran region of  Somalia. Somalia continues to grapple with the impacts of repeated cycles of drought, floods, coupled with growing insecurity and massive displacement. In fact, reports indicate that the 2021 post-Gu harvest was 30-40% below average, and which along with consecutive poor rainy seasons, has led to a cumulative effect on food availability and prices. At the beginning of the year, the number of food insecure people was high and this has been on the steady rise with projections painting a grim picture on the number of people that will require food assistance until early 2022. Furthermore, cereal production has been below average and access to irrigation has been low. The recent floods in Beletweyne have so far displaced over 1,000 households and affected over 20,000 hectares of irrigable land in several villages. Food prices, both locally produced and imported, have also increased due to limited supply and rising global food prices and transportation costs, thereby worsening food availability at household level across all target locations. 

This project will thus focus on providing life-saving support to 1,760 vulnerable households (approximately 10,560 individuals) in Beletweyne, Hiiran region. The project will target 11 villages in Beletweyne which include Baaslawe, Bacaad Buko, Bacad, Dhaayow, Doon Kudle, Haar Caddey, Luuq Dheere, Lafoole, Macruuf, Qooqane, and Qoydo. More specifically, the project will align with the overall SHF allocation principles for 2021 by focusing on providing agricultural support to farmers in target locations to enable them meet immediate food needs as well as restore their livelihoods. In addition, the intervention aligns with the Somalia Humanitarian Response Plan’s Food Security Objective 2 “to protect and restore livelihoods related to food and income sources”.

In protecting and restoring livelihoods in Beletweyne, DRC will focus on providing seasonally appropriate agricultural inputs in the form of quality seeds, farm tools, trainings, and support for land preparation and irrigation. In total, DRC will target 1,760 farmers in Beletweyne by providing each farmer with 20kg maize and 10kg cowpea seeds, 240 grams of assorted vegetable seeds, and provision of irrigation vouchers to support farmers' irrigation valued at $74 per farmer, and provision of a farming kit that contains a hoe, shovel, axe, fork, and kawawa. Following the distribution of these seasonal inputs, DRC will conduct 2 post-distribution monitoring exercises to establish the utility of these inputs and get overall feedback from the beneficiaries. 

To further complement the provision of these inputs, DRC will conduct Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) trainings with all farmers to grow their knowledge on crop management (cowpeas, maize and vegetable crops), soil and water management, seed quality, cropping techniques, integrated farming techniques, harvesting and storage, weed control, marketing, among other topics. This will prove beneficial for target beneficiaries particularly affected by the recent flash floods and who will be adequately prepared in the coming seasons to meet their food needs in the short and medium-term. DRC will adopt a Training of Trainers (ToT) approach that will see them cascade this knowledge to other farmers in the target villages. DRC will work closely with community members and leaders to identify the most vulnerable households to be targeted as laid out in DRC’s beneficiary selection criteria to ensure that life-saving support is provided to those that need it the most.