Climate change in Somaliland: ‘My children get very hungry’ – in pictures
More than 240,000 people in Somaliland do not have enough food because of acute droughts caused by poor rains. Save the Children, which is building wells and reservoirs and providing chlorination, warns that malnutrition rates – especially for children under five – are alarming and likely to increase 
After losing almost all of her livestock to drought, Shukri*, 50, moved to Gargara, a village in Somaliland, where she received emergency water.
‘The last three years have been so tough because the rains didn’t come. I used to have 200 goats, sheep, camels and donkeys. But now I have just 10 goats left. My livestock died because there was nothing left for them to eat. I used to feel like a rich woman because I had everything I needed – milk, butter, meat. Now I have none of these. The droughts have caused everyone to suffer’
Sahra, 60, has been a pastoralist all her life, and now lives in Gargara. She lost almost 400 animals to war, and after she built the herd up again, drought struck.
‘I’ve watched the weather get worse in my lifetime. The rains used to come all around the country but now it’s only some places, so people are moving close together. If people don’t move in time, they don’t get water and their life gets worse … I want my children to go to the city and find work. I have been a pastoralist all my life, but I want a better life for my children. Pastoralist life has become too hard’
Five years ago, Roda, 18, and her family travelled to Gargara in search of basic needs, such as water. Roda’s daughter, now 13 months old, was born in the camp they live in.
‘I miss my old life – we used to have a lot of livestock and 10 camels. But there is nothing in my old village now. Living in the camp is very difficult, especially the lack of water and healthcare. My child got sick recently and had diarrhoea for a number of days. I have to live here; I have nowhere else to go’
‘We moved through 20 villages trying to find water before settling here. It was very hard but we had to do it to find water and keep as many of our livestock alive as possible. We used to have over 80 but now we have 26 [animals]. So many have died’
Once a thriving pastoralist with 60 livestock, mother-of-three Sahel, 26, was forced to leave her home three years ago and travel to Gargara in search of water. She is finding it hard to make ends meet.
‘If you try to cook food to sell, there is no market – people just don’t have the money to buy it. You just end up eating it yourself. Now my life is full of worry. I don’t like staying here but I have to. I won’t go back unless there is something to go back to’
Mohamed, 70, says climate change has had a huge impact on the community over the past 20 years. Young people look to him for advice, but he does not know what to tell them.
‘We used to see droughts every 10 years or so, then it would pass and the rains would be good for the next 10 years. The last 20 years have been different; the droughts have become frequent and repetitive and there is no pasture left … Life used to be better … There was grass everywhere – it used to grow one metre high where we are standing now. You had to part it to sit down’
Hawa, 40, and her son Sadiiq*, eight, left their home village and walked over the mountains after a series of droughts.
‘In my old village, life was much better – I had donkeys to carry water, I had livestock to slaughter for meat, butter to cook with, and milk to drink. Here I have nothing, but I have nowhere else to go. My children get very hungry; sometimes they go a day without food, and often get diarrhoea’
*Names have been changed to protect identities
Hassan, 80, has lived through many droughts but the recent prolonged lack of rainfall is the worst he has experienced. Once a pastoralist with a large herd, Hassan now has no animals left.
‘We need many things in our town. Water is a basic need. All communities need it whether it comes from shallow wells or water assistance. Children should be sent to school on proper scholarships, and learn income-generating skills. I need cash for my children. I need health for my family but we don’t have sufficient healthcare’
Amal*, 11, travelled to Gargara with her family five years ago.
‘Our family used to have many livestock and seven camels, but now we just have three goats. I miss drinking camel’s milk – I remember it was so delicious, but it’s too expensive to buy now. When I’m older, I’d like to look after livestock like my family used to’
During the recent droughts, 40-year-old Annab feared for the lives of her seven children, who had become weak and stopped playing.
‘The droughts have been getting worse for 10 years. In May this year it was so severe, the rains failed again and my family and I didn’t have anything to drink. I was worried for my children’s lives. Then the emergency water came and it saved us’
Ahmed*, nine, lives in a temporary settlement near Gargara with his family. Like most children, he wants to play games and run around, but the lack of water often leaves him too weak to move.
‘In the mornings, I walk to near the mountains and try to feed the goats we have. We used to have hundreds of goats but now we just have 10. I also help my mother by collecting water. When it’s hot I get really thirsty but there isn’t much water’
Aasha*, five, lives in Bodale with her parents and four siblings. When Aasha was just one, a series of droughts killed many of her family’s herd, forcing them to leave their home in search of better conditions for themselves and their remaining livestock.
‘I help my mother to look after my baby sister. I also help with the goats, herding them from place to place. My favourite goat is a little one called Quruxo. It means beautiful one’
Source: Guardian