Somalilandsun: Poor performing Deyr rains in late 2020 in Sool, Sanaag and Togdheer have led to concerns that many communities who are already experiencing elevated IPC1 classification at crisis- and/or emergency needs, will also face drought conditions and water scarcity in 2021, further exacerbating dire humanitarian conditions on the ground. The Somali WASH cluster has already noted significantly increasing prices for 200-liter barrels of water, with some areas of Sanaag and Togdheer seeing rates as high as $3 to $5 per 200 liters (Somali WASH Cluster, January 2021).
The poor and erratic rainfall in late 2020 will therefore likely serve as one of the primary drivers of food insecurity across Sool, Sanaag and Togdheer in 2021, with as many as 2.7 million people facing IPC Phase 3 or above through mid-2021 without humanitarian assistance (FSNAU Technical Release, February 2021).
ACTED conducted a needs assessment in Toghdeer, Sool, Sanaag in late February and findings show severe water shortage. Respondents stated that on average, there was as much as a 60 percent reduction in water consumption by households looking to conserve meagre remaining water sources. Two thirds of respondents in IDP sites mentioned that there was in increase in the number of arrivals over the past three months. The primary reason for displacement was given as “loss of livelihood due to drought“. In Aynabo, Badhan, Burao districts also observed that new camps were being created to deal with the influx of newly displaced households.
”We are starting to reprogram, directing our crisis modifiers on the worst affected parts of the region, as the likelihood of la Nina and below average Gu remains a huge threat to the resilience of the communities we work with. We take a no regrets approach,” says Adan Sharif, ACTED Area Coordinator for Sool & Sanaag.
ACTED is continuously monitoring the situation and updating contingency plans, in view of the uncertainty of the March to May 2021 season. ACTED calls all donors and humanitarian community to invest in early action and respond now to avoid a crisis later.
Read ACTED Drought Needs Assessment – Sool, Sanaag and Togdheer – Post Deyr Rains 2021
