Providing emergency life-saving food and livelihood support to drought-affected communities in Somalia Unconditional Cash Transfer For Fisheries HHs in Cadale District of Middle Shabelle
Objective / Goal
The FAO project in Somalia aims to mitigate the severe impacts of drought by providing emergency life-saving food and livelihood support. This initiative is crucial for enhancing food security and building resilience among the most affected communities.
The overall objective of the proposed intervention is to improve the food security for the most drought affected populations in rural Somalia. The provision of cash and livelihood support in the rural areas targets hard-to-reach and marginalized communities by promoting increased access to humanitarian assistance for the most vulnerable.
The goal is to provide them with an opportunity to safeguard their assets, reduce risks and mitigate against push factors that could plunge them into destitution and consequential displacement.
Activities
Interventions included the following:
- Intervention 1:
unconditional cash transfers. FAO plans to reach riverine, agro-pastoral, pastoral and fishing households (HHs) within its Cash+ Programme. Of these, 30 percent of target households will be female- headed. These households will receive unconditional cash transfers valued at 80 percent of the food minimum expenditure basket per month by region. Cash transfers are intended to improve households’ immediate access to food and other basic needs, thereby preventing worse food outcomes, displacement, and allowing households to participate in livelihood activities. - Intervention 2:
conditional cash transfers. The focus of this intervention is to provide immediate access to cash to improve household’s access to basic goods and services, while engaging them to rehabilitate, or enhance critical community productive assets. Cash is delivered through conditional cash transfers for households participating in the cash-for-work scheme. -
Intervention 3:
Transitional Cash and Livelihood Programme . Under this intervention, FAO proposes to target vulnerable, drought-affected rural and coastal households in Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) 3+ districts with medium-term cash support. The focus of this intervention will be on building on the food security and livelihood gains realized in the recent Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA)-funded emergency assistance projects.
Somalia faces recurrent droughts that devastate food production and livelihoods, leading to widespread malnutrition, displacement, and loss of income sources, especially among the most vulnerable populations.
To address these challenges, the project implements unconditional and conditional cash transfers, supports livelihood activities, manages water resources, and controls desert locust infestations. These measures provide immediate relief while promoting long-term resilience.
The interventions have successfully prevented displacement, protected assets, and improved the overall well-being and resilience of drought-affected communities in Somalia. By targeting the most vulnerable groups, the project ensures that the benefits are far-reaching and sustainable.