The Federal Republic of Somalia is located in the Horn of Africa on the eastern edge of the continent – adjacent to the Red Sea, Suez Canal and key commercial waterways. The country has a land area of 637,540 km2 and is bordered by Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti to the west. Somalia has the longest coastline in Africa of over 3,025 km, which ranges from the Gulf of Aden in the north to the Indian Ocean in the east and south, with coastlines of around 1,000 km and 2,000 km respectively. The country stretches for almost 1,550 km from north to south between latitudes 120 N and 10S, and 1,095 km from west to east between longitudes 410
Figure 1: Administrative map of Somalia[1]
Somalia is currently facing the worst drought in 40 years. It has experienced more than 30 climate-related hazards since 1990, including 12 droughts and 19 floods (Worldbank2022). These occurred alongside crises in livestock systems, weak governance, debilitating poverty and violent, multi-layered conflicts.
Climate change further complicates these risks and adds new dimensions to them. One of the most important indicators of a changing climate in Somalia is the loss of trees. Between 2001 and 2021, Somalia lost 429,000 hectares of tree cover, the equivalent to a 4.9% decrease in tree cover in almost the same period, and to creating 840,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions. This meant Somalia lost of 205 million trees
The Somali people have always depended on natural resources for their livelihoods, and this continues to be the case today. Somalia is located in an arid and semi-arid region and the majority of its population depends entirely on precipitation and rain fed water for crop, natural resources and livestock production. Its coastal marine environment and its wildlife and their habitat are completely unprotected and unmanaged.
According to NDP-9, Somalia has a population of about 14.3 million, of which roughly 60 percent are nomadic and semi-nomadic pastoralists and 60 percent live in rural areas. Like many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, that population is predominantly young with 75 percent of it estimated to be under the age of 30, and almost 50 percent under the age of Somalia is also rapidly urbanising and, according to the 2017-2018 Somalia High Frequency Survey, has 40 percent of the population residing in urban areas, including Mogadishu with 10 percent, while nomadic pastoralists make up 26 percent and agro-pastoralist communities 23 percent. In 2014, it was estimated that 9 percent of Somalia’s population had been displaced by conflict and natural disaster and resided in IDP settlements.
In Somalia, women are disadvantaged compared to men on all socio-economic and human development indicators. According to UNDP gender in Somalia report, Somalia’s Gender Index stood at 0.776 (with a maximum of 1 denoting complete inequality), placing Somalia at the fourth highest position globally. The report further indicates that Somalia remains a highly unequal society by income, gender and geographical location. Women are less likely to find a job in the formal labour market and they generally earn less than men. Additionally, women are prone to gender-based violence and exposed to retrogressive cultural practices including Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). Poverty is prevalent among low-income earning women, rural communities, and the urban poor, concentrated in increasing urban settlements. The participation and roles of women in politics and environmental decision-making is minimal, which perpetuates limited female roles and inequality Climate change and gender inequality are inextricably linked. On the one hand, climate change slows progress towards gender equality and poses a challenge to poverty reduction efforts; on the other hand, gender inequality can further worsen the effects of climate change2.The use of land for grazing plays a crucial role in the lives of people and the economy in Somalia, since roughly 55% of the Somali population is pastoralist.
Somalia is largely made of Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) make up more than 80% of the country’s landmass and are characteristically prone to extreme weather conditions including high mean surface temperatures, periods of extended drought, highly erratic rainfall and strong winds. Rainfall in Somalia is generally low and erratic. The country has an average annual rainfall of about 250 mm. The northern maritime plains are extremely hot and arid with average annual rainfall less than 250 mm; with approximately 400 mm of rainfall in the south, and 700 mm in the south-west. The rainfall received in the central semi-arid parts of the country is as low as 50-100mm/year. A few small areas along the coastal strip of Somalia are classified as sub humid
The bimodal rainfall pattern has two rainy seasons, the Gu (April to June) and the Deyr (October to December), and two dry seasons, the Hagaa (July to September) and the Jilaal (January to March). The population relies on the long Gu rains and the shorter, but important, Deyr rains for agricultural production, pasture regeneration, and the replenishment of rivers, dams, and groundwater supply. Traditionally, the Gu was the main rainy season. However, there has been a general decline in long rains, explaining the frequency of drought and floods in the Horn of Africa. Historical trends show that droughts occur regularly at intervals of 2-3 years in the Deyr and 8-10 years in consecutive Deyr and Gu seasons, extending seasonal hardships. Currently, there are recurrent droughts due to climate change and variability.
Despite the civil conflict and the devastating impact of the 2016-2017 drought, the Somali economy was estimated to have grown at 2.5 percent in 2017, while in 2018, Somalia’s GDP growth was estimated at 2.8 percent.[5] The economy is largely dependent on livestock, remittance and money transfer companies, and telecommunications. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita was estimated to be only US$446 in 2017, having grown at only 2% per year over the last four years.[6] Remittances alone in 2016 were estimated at US$1.2–2 billion, equivalent to 23 to 38 percent of GDP. Remittances augment household income and create a buffer against shocks, however, remittances are vulnerable not only to changing habits of diaspora as a new generation comes of age but also to de-risking in the international financial system.
The common feature in the structure of the economy of the three sub-entities of Somalia is the predominance of agriculture and livestock which accounts for about 65% of the GDP and employment. Livestock accounts for about 40% of GDP and more than 50% of export earnings. The other main products in the economy include fish, charcoal and bananas, sugar, sorghum and corn. According to the Central Bank of Somalia, aggregate imports of goods average about US$460 million per year, higher than the pre-civil war in 1991. Exports of about US$270 million annually have also surpassed pre-war aggregate export levels (before 1991), but still resulting in a trade account deficit of about US$190 million per year.
The economy is largely dominated by the informal sector based on international trade networks controlled by a small group of wealthy businessmen. The majority of the population lives at the subsistence level and is engaged in small-scale businesses, as petty traders, livestock or grain producers. The private sector has demonstrated resilience and vitality in areas such as telecommunications, livestock, financial sector, water, electricity and fisheries. The private Telecommunication firms provide wireless services in most major cities and offer the lowest international call rates on the continent. Further, the extensive Somali community in the diaspora has played a major role in injecting a significant inflow of funds using strained banking systems. In the absence of a formal banking sector, money transfer/remittance services have sprouted throughout the country, handling up to $1.6 billion in remittances annually. Due to the incidences of terrorism, the international concerns over the money transfers into Somalia continue to threaten the existing financial services.
Despite the relative economic growth, most Somalis live in poverty (69 % live under the international poverty line of US$1.90 a day) and vulnerability with 2.3 million people living on the margins of food insecurity and 1.1 million are internally displaced[7]. Disaggregated data, along with the levels of severity of poverty, indicate that internally displaced persons (IDPs) and the rural population (both agro-pastoralists and nomads) have the highest rates of monetary poverty. An additional 10 percent of the population live within 20 percent of the poverty line, making almost 80 percent of the entire Somali population vulnerable to external shocks such as natural disasters, conflict and economic disruption, however small.
Pastoralism is the principle mode of production system in the country, mainly herding a combination of camels, sheep and goats. It is estimated that 40-60% of food and income sources of the pastoral communities is derived from livestock and livestock products (milk and Ghee5).
Pastoralism is a traditional land management and production system which supports wildlife and livestock in its basic principles. Through its dynamic, flexible and complex structures it has proved to be mostly adapted to the erratic climate and non-equilibrium natural conditions of dry lands by providing and conserving a large array of ecosystem services in semi-arid to arid areas of Awdal region, Mudug, and lower Shabelle.
During the last decades it has been increasingly recognized that pastoralism is essential for the sustainable management and ecological health of dry lands, but also highly sensitive to increasing environmental degradation and climate change.
Agro-pastoralism is practiced also in Somalia in area where the topography is hilly and offers fertile depressions. Sorghum, maize and cow peas are the principal crops. Agriculture ranks second to livestock, with the main agricultural areas offering the biggest potential yields being in the area between two rivers of Middle Shabelle, lower Shabelle, Gedo, Lower Juba, and Middle Juba.
Somalia is currently undergoing considerable land degradation (Map 2.) as a result of soil erosion, increasing badlands, overgrazing, heavy runoff, strong winds in dry seasons and deforestation. Land degradation, natural disaster (droughts) and climate change are major environmental challenges in Somalia causing threats to livelihoods, food security, peace and stability at all levels. 49% of Somalia is affected by moderate degradation and 30% affected by strong degradation. The impacts of these environmental problems are already being experienced across the Somalia as form of extreme weather conditions, increased temperatures and unexplained phenomena of plant mortality. Moreover, general predictions on the future climate at the Horn of Africa are made by the IPCC what is the appreviatrion forecast an increase of temperature of about 3.4° C for the future and an increase of rainfall variation between 30 – 40%,. The main environmental challenges facing the country are follows:
The most-severe environmental degradation process prevalent in almost every part of Somalia is the deforestation. A 2020 Somali government report notes Somalia lost 147,704 km2 to land degradation between 2000 and 2015, a figure representing 27% of its total land area and attributed to a combination of factors, including soil erosion, biological degradation, and gully erosion.
Since the 1970s, charcoal has been one of Somalia’s principal exports, along with livestock, hides and bananas. Charcoal and firewood are the primary sources of energy for the majority of households in Somalia and charcoal production provides a considerable amount of employment in rural areas (Ismail, 2011; Mohamed, 2001). Despite several attempts to ban charcoal production because of its detrimental environmental effects, the industry has increasingly grown following the collapse of the Somalian state in the 1990s (Baxter, 2007; Gaworecki, 2015). The consequences for the environment are dramatic: Whereas forests represented about 13% of Somalia’s land area in 1990, they only covered about 10.7% in 2010, with signs for accelerating deforestation rates in recent years (Bolognesi et al., 2015; UNSC, 2011). But the growth of the industry has also provoked conflicts between woodcutters and rural communities, whose livelihoods are threatened by deforestation and soil erosion, and increased the revenues of armed groups such as al Shabaab (UNDP, 2013; UNSC, 2011). It has been estimated that al Shabaab earns USD 38-56 million annually from charcoal exports and USD 8-18 million annually from taxing charcoal traders at roadblocks and checkpoints. This makes charcoal one of the group’s main sources of income, but also a matter of conflict with rival rebel groups (Nellemann et al., 2014; UCDP, n.d.; Ward, 2014).
Deforestation is attributed to fuel wood and charcoal production, timber for buildings, clearing of land for settlements, private enclosures, agriculture and overgrazing. Deforestation exacerbates the problem of drought vulnerability and increases the pressure on already exhausted open range and leads to loss of biodiversity, habitat and soil degradation. Charcoal which is considered as major drive of deforestation remain the principal energy producing fuel commonly used in urban and rural areas for cooking. With increasing populations and high urbanization rate, the demand for charcoal is expected to increase exponentially. Due to climate change, charcoal production has become an important coping mechanism for poor pastoral households that have been affected by recurring droughts and vegetation loss. Deforestation considered to be being the major factor causing diminishing of rangelands integrity and leading to severe soil erosion and affect negatively rural livelihoods in Somalia.
The main causes of soil erosion in Somalia include overgrazing, tree cutting, poor agronomic practices, floods, wind, and the limited use of soil and water conservation practices. Other major causes of soil erosion in include vehicles tracks on unplanned feeder roads, overgrazing and the clearing of vegetation. Rugged and steep topography surrounding the floodplains facilitates runoff water forming flash floods, accelerating various forms of water erosion including splash, sheet, rill and gully. Rills and gullies have damaged or destroyed almost 50% of floodplains, which were the primary grazing lands for livestock during dry seasons. Sinkholes are contributing considerably to water and sediment loss by diminishing the water- retention capacity of in soils with an underlying shallow limestone formation ( Awdal region, Mudug and lower Shabelle).
The Green Somali Initiative was created as the primary care for environmental management. The GSI is a non-for-profit organizations that strives to achieve Environmental Conservation, land restoration, Health, Peace and justice and, improved livelihoods for federal Government of Somalia states. Inadequate human, infrastructure and financial capacity for managing environmental management and low level of awareness of the public on environmental issues considered also as main challenges.
The Government’s goal has been to ensure environmental sustainability by managing environmental damages, and ensuring the sustainable use of natural resources. However, a number of factors continue to constrain the achievement of this goal, including inadequate legal framework and limited of implementation and enforcement of the laws, while there are number of environmental and natural resource management policies and laws in writing, their implementation and enforcement remain challenge. Those policies include the newly reviewed and approved Somalia Environmental Policy.
Somalia has state laws and policies intended to conserve the environment and govern the ownership and use of land and natural resources. The Somalia constitution has got a provision of environmental protection and conservation, article 45 of the constitution demands that “ All people in the federal Republic of Somalia shall give a special priority to the protection and safeguarding of the environment, which is essential for the wellbeing of the society, and to the care of the natural resources., in addition to that, there are fauna and forest conservation law and Environmental management. Furthermore. There are existing policies such as environmental policy, Environment Management Law, climate change policy and environmental sector strategy aligned in the national development plan.
Environmental degradation, natural disaster and climate change are major challenges in Somalia, in particular in terms of threats to livelihoods, food security, peace and stability both at the national and regional levels. The impacts of climate change are already being experienced across the Somalia. Somalia regions are already experiencing its effects in the form of extreme weather conditions, increased temperatures, cyclons and unexplained phenomena of plant mortality in some of the vegetation zones. The country is a arid and semi-arid land suffering from the adverse impacts of climate change including recurrent droughts, floods, increased biodiversity loss, species migration and encroachment of invasive plants, increased rural urban migration, changes in the vegetation composition, soil fertility loss, and increased infestation of crop by pests and diseases and increased health risks. The country is severely affected by a great deal of environmental degradation due to many factors such as clearing of vegetation; illegal charcoal trade and export; overgrazing; soil erosion; deforestation and depletion of natural resources. The country has been undergoing transformations which are characterized by diminishing natural resources, rising human and livestock pressure, unabated environmental degradation, and population movements. Pastoralist is the dominant land use mainly with camels, sheep, and goats.
Somalia’s livestock plays a vital role in sustaining the national economy and people livelihood. Somalia’s livestock sector is affected by many constraints that limit its production potential. One of the most important constraints is recurrent drought and lack of proper natural resources management. Currently, nearly 90% of the country’s rangelands have been affected by years of consecutive droughts. Many of these rangelands were deteriorated due to the lack or poor grazing management practices in the past. Moreover, poor range and forests management has led increased rates of land degradation, erosion and decline in soil quality. One of the largest management challenges faced on a grazing and forest lands in Somalia is balancing between range production supply and demand. Without proper rangeland and forest management, these impacts will continue to the extent that the land will not be able to recover. There is an immediate need to develop and implement a proper sustainable forest and grazing management that compatible with sustainable animal production goals in the country through Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration FMNR.
In the past years’ shortage in rainfall and drought has resulted in decreased forest cover and rangeland production available to livestock. Management of range and forest lands in different Somalia regions where drought is inevitable requires sufficient planning and preparation to minimize performance and economic losses of livestock. There is an urgent need to develop a FMNR approach that includes appropriate drought management strategies. FMNRis a land management technique that is being used by some farmers and pastoralist in Somalia with great success. FMNR involves allowing trees and other vegetation to regenerate naturally, and then carefully managing them to ensure they thrive. The technique has been shown to be effective at restoring degraded land, generating more biomass than if the land were simply left alone. The FMRN approach will also provide livestock producers in other regions with efficient, economical, and ecologically sound alternatives for range improvements.
The proposed project will be working at Mudug region, Awdal and Lower Shabelle which are largely agro-pastoral with the majority of farmers rearing camel, goats and sheep which all depend on pasture.
The project target group is composed of pastoralists households, the GSI and its staff and Mudug, Awdal. And Lower Shabelle regions at large. The project beneficiaries are approximately 45,000 households; expected direct and indirect project beneficiaries are estimated at 350,000 which are including target pastoral communities and Mudug, Awdal. And Middle Shabelle regions at large; benefiting from policy framework development and improvement of FMNR Approach. With regards to gender, the population counts 50.15% female and 49.85% male. Gender mainstreaming approach of the project will be to seek maximum involvement of women, using FMNR champions and practitioner female groups and staff, in order to adequately address their needs, also contributing to their empowerment.
Project target villages of mudug e.g. Baxdo, Hobyo, Xaradheere, Wisil and Bacaad-weyn seasonal grazing reserve, Awdal villages e.g. Gab, Sheed-dheer, Garbo-dadar, Cara-weyne, and Lixaadley. Lower Shabelle villages e.g. Afgoye, Qoryoley, Wanlaweyn, Awdheegle, and Barawe.
Libaaxley and Baxdo villages had made an appeal for rangeland rehabilitation interventions. the community’s call was addressed to the GSI since rangeland management portfolio lies on it.
After considering the community’s appeal, land degradation assessment and monitoring reports done by partner Ministry of Environment and Climate Change of Federal Republic of Somalia.
The GSI got convinced that there is need for an urgent intervention, since then, the GSI carried out need assessment. Main objective of the need assessment was to identify project communities that were affected and their livelihood bases, intensity of land degradation that exist, intervention done before, community’s village elders, Faith leader, youth and Gender committees that exist and type of project strategic objectives/interventions that could be employed and how it is conversant to the local context.
The field mission designated for needs assessment took 7 days including 4 days in the field and 3 travel days. Target villages and respected communities effected were identified, mainly pastoralism being major source of livelihood, the mission noted that rangeland degradation through FMNR is high in all visited target sites; change of vegetation composition, vegetation cover and visible land degradation signs including sheet erosion and gully erosion are clear manifestations of high – level land degradation. Reduction of rangeland productivity as a result of rangeland degradation prompted change of grazing patterns and change of livestock composition.
Existing local committee associations including village Elders, Faith leader, Youth and Gender committees were involved whilst planning project on “integrated FMNR and rangeland rehabilitation “.
The Federal Government of Somalia constitution has given a room for the country environmental management which stated that integrity and stability of Somalia environment is a national obligation to be met. The proposed project complies with the Federal constitution and implementation of Article 45 of the Constitution of Somalia states that “All people in the federal Republic of Somalia shall give a special priority to the protection and safeguarding of the environment, which is essential for the wellbeing of the society, and to the care of the natural resources.
The project is in line with the Government NDP-9, the main blue print for the country which is translated into an action plan in the National Environment Strategy and Action Plan, which outlines Five pillars as follows:
The project proposal is also consistent with the indications contained in the NDP-9 where natural resources are acknowledged to play a crucial role in the development in the country. The proposed project is fully in line with the overall objective of Somalia’s national development strategy, SDG – namely to promote sustainable development paths that improve Somalia’s livelihood.
The proposed project contributes to addressing the priorities identified by National Policy on Environment. These priorities including biodiversity conservation, rural development and policy and regulatory framework development.
The project also seeks to address two strategic issues outlined in the policy. These are:
The proposed project aims rehabilitation and sustainable management of natural resource and conservation of the environment based on following laws and policies.
Some effort has been carried out by GSI to conserve the existing natural resources in Mudug and Awdal Regions. The strategic objectives of the project will contribute to PSG4 (economic growth) and priority 5 (Develop and implement a comprehensive and integrated environmental management strategy that addresses desertification, promotes alternatives to charcoal as an energy source and protects land, water, forest and coastal resources).
The project will contribute to reduce poverty through the sustainable use of natural resource management. Also, the proposed activities will contribute to the objectives of other environmental conventions, namely the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity (UNCBD).
The project aims to develop a better understanding of the impacts of drought on native rangelands and livestock performance, and how to manage rangelands and livestock during and between droughts in Buhoodle and Wadaamogoo districts . This can be achieved through controlling the duration and intensity of grazing prior to the drought which will influence the production and mortality of range plants during and after the drought. It is also includes developing a demonstration site that to be rested for an entire growing season so as to provide a learning and know sharing flat form.
The Ministry of Environment and Climate change is mandated to ensure that better living conditions are achieved in the rural setting of Somaliland through better coordinated and planned interventions and towards better conservation of environment for future generations.
This project will enhance participatory natural resource management through involvement of target communities, the project will focus on marginalized communities in eastern part of the country.
The guiding design principle of the project is to promote a participatory sustainable natural resources management for mitigation of drought and to sustaining livelihood systems and rural development.
The overall goal of the project is to reduce poverty level of the project target communities and enhance biodiversity conservation through improvement rangeland resources, fodder production technology, capacity building and development of policy and legal frame work.
The specific objectives are:
As a contribution to the achievement of the overall goal and specific project objectives, one expected outcome and three expected outputs would be achieved within the locations for project activities. The project contributes to improvement of food security and livelihood of the project target communities in Buuhoodle and Wadaamogoo districts.
Reduce poverty level of project target communities through sustainable management of rangeland resources and capacity building.
The country is affected severely by environmental degradation due to many factors such as clearing of vegetation; over grazing, soil erosion by wind and water runoff; deforestation for charcoal burning and deterioration of natural resources. Recurrent droughts in Somaliland are symptoms of complex trends and inter-linkages that are related to dwindling capacity of a fragile ecological system, environmental degradation, climate change and the absence of pastoral development initiatives.
The proposed project therefore seeks to contribute to environmental conservation/rehabilitation and rural livelihood improvement in the targeted districts and Somaliland in general by promoting a community based approach to natural resources management while at the same time building the MoERD and local communities capacities take their rightful role in environmental conservation and sustainable management of the country’s natural resources through a participatory approach.
It is evident that, forests and rangeland contribute directly to food security, poverty reduction and environment conservation through Provision of diets, animal feed, income, habitat, and improving soil fertility.
The project expected to contribute significantly to addressing the barriers to sustainable rural development through increasing the vegetation cover in the area, in forms of new plantations and rehabilitated rangeland. This is in turn will contribute to increasing forest and range productivity, increase animal fodder specially during dry season, reduce soil erosion, and contribute to reducing the risk of migration from rural to urban areas and consolidate social peace and stability in the area. The project activities will contribute to combating desertification and land degradation, conserve biodiversity and reduce poverty through strengthening the enabling environment and developing institutional capacity, meeting the local needs for fodder. Moreover, the project will provide employment to the rural population and thereby improving their socio-economic conditions.
Increase income level of the project target communities and livelihoods through improvement of rangeland resource, capacity building for sustainable natural resource management for both MoECC and local communities and promotion of best practices on NRM.
The MoECC is expected to be at the forefront of championing of sustainable natural management practices in Somaliland. It is also expected to lead the other government institutions in adopting environmentally friendly natural resource utilisation for development. there is a need for more support to enable MoECC to perform its core functions of spearheading the sustainable management of natural resources. Building capacity and empowerment of local communities are the foundations of sustainable natural resource management. At present, the rights of community and their traditional knowledge on natural resources management is not well recognized in Somaliland and weak local community’s institutions characterized by low capacity is a common barrier to sustainable natural resources management. The proposed project seeks to enhance the MoECC and local community’s capacities through targeted institutional capacity building (personnel, infrastructure and technical assistance) as well as identification and adoption of best practices in range and forest management.
The project has three outputs as indicated below:
Output 1: Capacity building of the ministry through construction of ministry’s headquarter office and development technical skills of the local communities and ministry staff.
Output 2. Rehabilitate 10,000 ha of degraded rangeland through extension, reseeding, water provision, water spreading and harvesting techniques, protection and sustainable participatory range management.
Output 3. Develop policy and legal framework for better sustainable management of the environment through enactment, review and translation of new and existing polices.
The three outputs are designed to restore, rehabilitate, conserve and protect the natural resources in Buuhoodle and Wadaamogoo districts. The project is based on involvement of local communities in natural resource management for food security, improving their livelihood and conserving the environment.
This will be developed at two levels: national and local. At the national level, three technical officers will be specialised in the field of forest management, range management and watershed management to lead the MoECC related Department in the future to sustain adopted management systems and technical activities in the future, furthermore, short time and mediam time courses will be provided. At local level mechanisms, the project will design a tailored training programme using multiple methodologies, including facilitated Workshops, Demonstrations, Seminars, role playing, Case Studies…etc to train local people in forest and range management.
The main causes of rangeland degradation in the project target area is contained in, drought, over grazing, deforestation for charcoal production and poor management of rangelands. Solution to these problems could be attained through sustainable range management based on participatory approach, which involves local communities in the management and protection of grazing lands to be hastened natural regeneration. The approach will result in reducing degradation of the rangeland in the project area and improves range health and livestock productivity in addition to environmental improvement.
Since more rangeland are available to graze/browse in the two sites, it is important to develop a strategy that includes rotating through these rangelands and provide water to help in people settlement and animal distribution. Water for people and livestock is critical, and during drought, more difficult to obtain. Additional sources of water such as water tanks, ponds, or reservoirs, Dams and wells (where underground water is available) should be explored and developed. Moreover, if livestock production is to be sustained on the targeted sites rangelands, huge effort of extension and capacity building of local people are needed to assure proper understanding and implementation of the efficient and effective management of these rangelands.
10,000 ha of rangeland in will be targeted by the project where, rangeland will be rehabilitated as required, and sustainably managed for drought management, rangeland improvement. This can be achieved through controlling the duration and intensity of grazing, improve the production and control mortality of range plants, promote fodder production techniques, reseeding and enhancing natural regeneration using suitable water harvesting techniques and proper erosion control. Targeted areas will be inventoried and assessed and proper management plans will be developed accordingly. Rehabilitation and restoration will involve villagers, communities, women groups, implementing partners and related institutions in reseeding, rehabilitation and management of 10,000 ha in the target rangelands. Local communities will be involved in the reseeding, rehabilitation, and management activities.
The rehabilitation and reseeding of most degraded parts of rangelands will be undertaken using local and indigenous preferable and palatable plant species and enhancement of natural regeneration. Suitable water harvesting techniques will be used to ensure the success of reseeding and rehabilitation activities.
Key activities
2.1.1 Community mobilization and engagement.
2.1.2 protection of rangeland to be rehabilitated through community fencing and range guards.
2.1.3 Construction of soil and water conservation measures including soil bunds, stone check dams, water diversion channels, and tree planting. Etc.
2.1.4 Implement seed collection, reseeding and enhancing natural regeneration activities through involvement of local community
2.1.5. Establishment of two range enclosure- demonstration site (each of 100 ha) inside selected target sites. As seed source and this include survey, mapping, demarcation fencing and rehabilitation).
2.1.6 Subsidize 60 percent of total price for each LPG cylinder 6 kg size with grill (10,000 pcs) for 10,000 HHs in major towns of the country.
2.1.7 Establishment of two flying nurseries with two water reservoirs (berkeds).
2.1.8 Establishment of fodder production demonstration site for agropastoralist at Wadamogoo village (rehabilitation of existing community earth dam, land preparation, irrigation system, equipment, trainings on fodder production techniques, fodder storage and fodder production officer).
2.1.9 Promotion of forest none woody products for livelihood improvement ( Bee keeping)
2.1.10 Restoration of Dulcad seasonal grazing reserve (community mobilization, set up of management centers/units, transport, food and utensils)
2.1.11 Soil and water conservation measures (seasonal grazing reserve (50,000 Lm for 3 years)
Seasonal grazing reserve management and operations (range guards, supervisor, communication, fuel,)
2.1.12 Seasonal grazing reserve management and operations ( range guards, supervisor, communication, fuel,)
Key activities
3.1.1 Establishment of national rural development policy.
3.1.2 Development of administrative guidelines and procedures for EIA
3.1.3 Translation of newly developed climate change policy
3.1.4 Disseminate of newly developed policies and laws.
3.1.5 Review ministry’s programme management policy and risky register, financial policy and procedure manual, procurement policy and procedure manual. Asset management policy and asset register and make permanent asset tags
3.1.6 Review and develop environmental regulations.
The proposed project activities rely on involvement of the communities through commitment, labor, and organization. The participatory approach of the project will reinforce and rebuild social cohesion. The consequence of social cohesion, reduced tensions will naturally minimize the possibilities of future conflicts among the targeted communities. The role which the community will play in the project is crucial particularly in natural resource management such as rangeland rehabilitation.
Local communities could be involved in all activities such as soil and water conservation, rehabilitation (afforestation and reseeding) working labors as forest and range guards, protection of rehabilitated area and also will involve in monitoring and evaluation. This will support the implementation of future activities and support the sustainability of the project activities after the termination of the project. This is also help in bringing local people to work together for common goal through participatory approach and will reduce the conflict which could be appear in the future among the target communities.
A thorough mapping of local stakeholders and land tenure will be undertaken by the PMT and MoECC staff during the feasibility phase and will inform the conflict mitigation plans.
The main stakeholders identified include:
These stakeholders will also be the main implementing institutions for the project.
The gender mainstreaming approach will be the base for project and the project will seek maximum involvement of women, using specialized female staff and local organizations and in order to adequately address their needs, also contributing to their empowerment.
The proposed project will be implemented in accordance with the ministry’s operational, procurement, financial and administrative procedures and guidelines.
MoERD will engage the well-established PMT to ensure the success of the implementation of the project. The PMT consist of The Project Manger PM, Technical officers, field officers, Project Administrator PA and project drivers.
The Project Manager (PM) who is a senior MoECC official who fits the approved requirement as set out in the job description. The Project Manager will be responsible for the overall management of the project on behalf of MoECC as the project holder (PH).
Project Administrator to support to the PM in the management of the project. The project will have four technical officers and as follows:
Specifically, the above members of the PMT will have the following roles:
Under the guidance of the PM, TO-staff will be responsible in their respective areas of specialization including monitoring, capacity building, rangeland management, and fodder production, at HQ and regional levels as follows:
The project manager will be based in Hargeisa and will fully be responsible for overseeing the work of project staff and will constantly carry out threat and risk mapping activities to ensure the effective implementation and management of the project. The project manager will collaborate with the local authorities and community in order to meet desired outcome of the project.
Capacity building and M&E officer will be based in Hargeisa. And their mandate will be as follows
Will be fully responsible for all activities under the capacity building output. Will be reporting to PM.
Will be responsible for monitoring and evaluation of project life cycle.
With the help of PM, M&E officer will develop project monitoring and evaluation plans.
Will be reporting to PM.
fodder production officer, will be responsible for the entire fodder production activities, including, technical on fodder production, seed sowing, fodder management, harvesting, baling and proper storage.
A project administrator will be based in Hargeisa and will be assigned to keep custody of the project financial accounts and will be responsible for administration matter and the preparation of financial statement reports and will submit to PM for review and approval.
Range and forest field officers will be recruited to manage day to day activities as per project plan and collect all information and data required, and will be based in field office. Additionally, a qualified short time technical engineer will be recruited for technical supervision of all construction-related activities.
Local authorities will play an active role during the project period, and project staff will coordinate with them to ensure the sustainability of the project in the long term. MoERD project staff at HQ will continuously conduct field trips to monitor project activities in the target areas.
In general, the project monitoring and evaluation (M&E) responsibility lies with the PMT to ensure efficiency and effectiveness of the project, the M&E plan will be developed and used to track achievement of the milestones set at the onset of the project and also to inform any possible changes to the project design and or the work plan. The project M&E plan shall be generated from the approved log frame and will be generally be used to track progress.
Moreover, effective participatory monitoring and evaluation of activities under each output of the project is crucial to facilitate learning and adjustment, as well as to inform decisions on possible re-orientation and scaling up of project interventions.
Participatory project monitoring and evaluation will be conducted in accordance with established procedures and will be provided by the project team with support from different stakeholders. Moreover, the Ministry of Environment and Rural Development will constantly monitor the project achievements and funding provider will also carry out an evaluation on progress made of the project activities to ensure that the objectives of the project are met.
The actual M&E process will involve field visits to the project location, holding of review meetings with the beneficiaries and the staff of the implementing partners and documentation of progress and lessons learned.. A final post evaluation exercise will be conducted by external consultant to assess the effectiveness and achievements of the project. A final report will be submitted to all stakeholders.
The Strategic logical framework will provide indicators for project implementation along with their corresponding means of verification. Day-to-day technical and financial monitoring will be a continuous process
Two subsequent assessment surveys – mid-term and end of project – will help evaluate contributions of the project to the target groups’ livelihoods.
The project team is responsible for guiding and supervising organisations that are responsible to implement special surveys or studies required for evaluating project effects and impacts. It is also responsible for reviewing existing social and economic data for the Project area to assess if it can provide good baseline data for impact evaluation, and identifying gaps to be filled.
Provision is to be made for a mid-term and final evaluation to be carried out by external consultants contracted by the financial provider (Donor). The responsibility of external evaluators is to view project performance against objectives achievements and goals.
The Ministry of Environment and climate change has a gender sensitive policy for recruiting and training new staff. The Minister is a woman and new recruitment will be based on achieving gender balance as much as possible. The main focus of the ministry at present is to rehabilitate and manage forest and rangelands through community based and community owned management. Rehabilitation of forest and rangeland will therefore have both a technical and a social management aspect including gender inclusion.
The current proposed project aims to incorporate gender mainstreaming into its activities at all levels to ensure that women fully participate in the implementation of project activities as well as in decision making with respect to all aspects of the project life cycle. Women’s will be empowered through participation in all activities during the life of the project and earning of income from the project activities. Women will be targeted to participate in Pastoral Village committees and community organization so as to play their role in decision making and planning[8]
The project directly addresses gender issues at the MoECC, and community levels through participatory involvements in design, planning and implementation of capacity building and natural resource management activities.
The gender mainstreaming approach of the project will be to seek maximum involvement of women, using specialized female staff and local organizations and NGOs (Ips), in order to adequately address their needs, also contributing to their empowerment.
Women will be strongly involved in establishing and managing the flying tree nurseries, rehabilitation and management of rangelands and the formation of the village development committees.
This project will be a community owned and managed activity, facilitated by the ministry of Environment and climate change., thus the likelihood of its sustainability should be high. However, it is very important that such communities are continuously monitored and suitably trained to build their management capacity.
It will be its responsibility, therefore, the MoECC will guide development of an appropriate plan that will allow the beneficiaries to gain the necessary skills in a timely manner. This should include the development of appropriate extension packages, the training of village extension agents and technical training and support to the range and forestry extension officers. The project design should allow for continuous monitoring that will permit effective evaluation of performance and assumptions and suggest improvements and modifications as necessary.
The project will address issues that affect the long-term sustainability of forest and range conservation as well as the welfare of local communities through promoting the project approach that engaged to relevant institutions and the community. Moreover, sustainability of the proposed project will be assured by policy support where, MoECC policy is encouraging effective popular participation and presenting a good model for sustainable development.
The Government of Somaliland will continue to give sustainable rural development a high priority and the project will make use of the relevant policies related to rural development, environment, range and forestry to support its activities (micro finance, land tenure…etc.) in order to advocate for increased investments and benefits.
The capacity of technical staff at all level will be improved through different training courses. The MoECC under the government budget will manage the project’s Outputs. An increased budget will largely be needed to cover salaries for increased staffing and for operational costs due to extra buildings and vehicles operations and maintenance as well as staff training costs. Whilst the ministry will seek to fulfil its mandate using projects, it will still be necessary to increase government budgets.
The government increased fund for MoERD to protect and conserve natural resources and environment. Funding has been gradually increasing over the last several years. These positive trends have been confirmed in 2023, 2024, 2025 and up to 2026 budget plans. Moreover, the government started establishment of environmental legal framework (policies and laws). This obviously demonstrate the commitment of the government to increase financing and legislative frameworks in the field of natural resources and environment. The government’s commitment to cover the staff salary costs during and after the project completion. This will greatly contribute to the financial sustainability of project. Although the government’s commitments to finance MoERD activities is not enough, the level of general support is satisfactory and there is evidence of positive actions. Budget allocation for MoECC has increased from 300,000 up to 1.9 million dollars, 2013 to 2020. The number of employees was increased by 200 percent during the same period.
The sustainable rangeland management expected to play significant role in the local economy, thereby, it offers short term incomes with a view to long term recovery and sustainability of livelihoods. The proposed activities are expected reduce poverty through strengthening the enabling environment and developing institutional capacity, meeting the local needs for Rangeland products.
In the long run the project seeks to support regeneration of natural resources, introduction of new technologies such as rain water harvesting, and improved participatory institutional arrangements. All of which will ultimately contribute to poverty reduction through increased rangeland productivities. The immediate benefits include employment in the construction of soil and water conservation structures, rehabilitation of rangeland where, communities will be employed as project labour in all activities such as seedling production, tree planting, seeds collection, reseeding, construction of soil and water structure…ets.
The project activities such as rehabilitation of rangeland will contribute to combating land degradation, desertification, and conserve biodiversity. The proposed project activities will contribute to maintaining ecological processes and not damaging other ecosystems. Mainly local, indigenous and adapted species will be used in the range rehabilitation activities. Moreover, it is expected that the project input on conservation and management of rangeland will enhance the natural regeneration and protection of many of the range vegetation that have been severely affected by over grazing and mismanagement. An increase in both forest and range cover, will create and/or increase ecological niches for ecologically important species.
Proposed rangeland rehabilitation activities and water harvesting structure will contribute to soil formation, and erosion control. Furthermore, the roots of trees and other plants have an important function to fix the soil and therefore prevent erosion. During feasibility and design phases Environment and Social Assessments ill be conducted to identify potential negative impacts and mitigation actions agreed on.
The proposed project will address climate change through supporting climate change policy enactment and dissemination of the said policy and other related policies and laws, moreover, it is expected that the project will contribute to building the resilience of the targeted communities and help them to cope with the recurring drought that adversely affect rangeland’s productivity, and their local livelihood.
Rangeland restoration and reforestation activities will improve the microclimate in terms of increased humidity and water conservation, lower temperatures and therefore less evaporation, and will reduce soil erosion, and will therefore improve conditions for counteract the negative impacts of climate change.