Saving livestock—and livelihoods—for the men and women pastoralists of Ethiopia
In Ethiopia’s southeast region, livestock are essential for survival. “We were pure herders. We used to follow the water and grass,” said Mahabo Hassen, a female livestock owner from the outskirts of Warder, in Ethiopia’s Somali Region.
© FAO / T. Legesse
The animals provide families with milk to drink and to make butter and yoghurt. Male camels and donkeys are also used to fetch water and transport grain. Sheep or goat hides, or rope made from camel skins also generates income. But with the failure of two consecutive rainy seasons and depleting resources for pasture and water, livestock-dependent pastoralists who live in the driest areas of Ethiopia, like Mahabo and others, have struggled to find ways to keep their animals alive.
“The drought was gradual” said Mahabo. “When the impact was at its greatest, the animal diseases came. Animals became malnourished and died from common illnesses. They had no immunity.” The shorter rainy season was her last hope for some relief, but those rains failed too.
Like Mahabo, Yusuf Salad, from the Dollo Zone of Ethiopia’s Somali Region, was also worried. He had held high hopes for the “deyr”, which arrive towards the end of the year. But when the deyr rains came, they were poor and erratic and nowhere near enough to replenish the grazing land on which his animals relied for survival. Little by little, his animals became weaker and weaker, and began to fall ill.
Mahabo and Yusuf then heard of assistance being given to farmers like them, in a town named Warder. FAO and other organizations were using various activities to support communities and restore their food security and livelihoods. “We heard food for people was being provided, along with water and animal feed and medicines,” said Yusuf.