BURAO, Somaliland — Hussein Dirie stands alone in a village he has known and lived in all his life. Outside of Somaliland’s bustling towns and cities, a pastoralist’s life is destroyed by a drought more unrelenting than he has ever known.
Across Somalia and Somaliland, the U.N. estimates that 6 million people are in need of help. The drought is more severe and more extreme than any drought on record, and, so far, it shows no sign of ending while the U.N.’s Somalia appeal remains half-funded.
In normal times, the Gu rains, which fall between March and May, provide fresh pasture to feed animals. But due to successive failed rains, pastoralists have lost their livestock and their livelihoods.
“Most Somalis depend on livestock. When the animals die, people do, too,” said Abdi Yaasiin, secretary of the Togdheer region. “The future, only God knows. I hope that he gives us something to live on, but the future is not so good.”… READ MORE