Somalia
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Photo: Cassandra Nelson/Mercy Corps
Our strategy
Respond to emergency needs rising from the Horn of Africa hunger crisis, while continuing work to build more peaceful, productive communities in Puntland, Somaliland and the Central region.
The context
Despite the country’s notorious instability, the northern parts of Somalia are relatively calm and functioning. Still, more than two decades of civil strife and extremism have resulted in a long-lasting class of displaced people dependent on government and humanitarian interventions. The worst drought in 60 years fueled a desperate food crisis throughout the Horn of Africa and created even more urgent needs in and around Mogadishu's displacement camps.
Our work
- Emergency response: Providing food and clean water to families displaced by famine
- Conflict & Governance: Forming peace committees to help communities resolve clan disputes and provide mediation services
- Environment: Engaging local groups in environmental initiatives such as rehabilitating garbage pits, planting tree nurseries and launching a “reduce, reuse and recycle” campaign to promote climate-friendly economic development
- Children & Youth: Increase education, economic and civic participation opportunities for Somali youth to reduce instability
All stories about Somalia
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Somalia: Testifying before the U.S. Senate about the Horn of Africa crisis August 10, 2011
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Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan: Horror in the Horn of Africa: reflections and projections August 2, 2011
I first encountered extreme poverty and hunger in 1972 when I drove through Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia on a church mission trip. It struck me in the heart and I felt helpless.
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Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya: Situation worsens in the Horn of Africa, our response increases July 20, 2011
Today, the United Nations officially declared a famine in parts of Somalia. What does this alarming news mean? Technically, it refers to conditions that include 30 percent acute malnutrition among the population of a specific place.
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Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia: Not just hunger, but fear July 14, 2011
Nearly everyone in the world experiences hunger at some point during their day. That said, it's different for all of us.
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Somalia: Will the U.S. stand by as famine looms in Somalia? July 7, 2011
"The drought has gotten so bad that we have seen camels dying of thirst," recounted a Mercy Corps colleague during my recent visit to Somalia.
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Somalia: Reports of people moving north to find food as Somalia's drought conditions worsen July 7, 2011
People affected by drought, conflict and limited access to humanitarian aid in Bay, Bakool, Lower and Middle Shabelle, Lower and Middle Juba, and Gedo regions of southern Somalia are fleeing north to find food and a better life.
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Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya: Food crisis hits Horn of Africa July 6, 2011
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Somalia: Youth voices in a troubled land June 22, 2011
In the northern Somalia semi-desert regions of Somaliland and Puntland, clans fight fiercely over dwindling supplies of wood, water and grazing land. The fewer the resources, the greater the competition. It’s an age-old conflict that jeopardizes the country’s future, especially its youth.
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Somalia: Healing the wounds of natural resource conflict in Somalia May 24, 2011
It was one of my toughest decisions ever to join Mercy Corps in Somaliland as the Project Officer for the People-to-People Environmental Peacebuilding Program. My main motivation was twofold, to join as a humanitarian and for personal career development.
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Somalia: Broader perspective from a bigger team May 4, 2011
Joint monitoring trips are the most exciting visits, in my opinion, to go and see Mercy Corps' program activities.