Drought Response - Part 3

 The road to Garowe from Galkacyo heads north parallel to the border with Ethiopia. I was told that it was built by the Chinese and is about 40 years old. In fact, there isn't much of it left. It's rough, to say the least. And some tarmac is usually worse than no tarmac. Thankfully, sections of it are slowly being re-done. But it will be a long time before Bosaso (on the Gulf of Aden) to Mogadishu is a fully paved highway (1,388km/863miles). I'm sure that those who need to use this road on a regular basis are anxiously awaiting that day to come.

Given that we have several projects along the road between the two towns, the plan was to spend the majority of the day visiting activities along the way in addition to meeting with another mayor. One thing that came up as we visited these villages was this constant them of, “thanks for your support; here are some more needs”. There is a temptation on our part to do everything we can to address these continued needs. But the reality is that there is a limited amount of resources. Those that have had some support need to understand that the support needs to be spread around. And aid dependency is a harmful drug. We need communities to increasingly wean themselves off international assistance.

life-giving water in the middle of the desert

The first stop was to visit a recently rehabilitated borehole. We met with community elders first and it was apparent that they were extremely grateful for the support. Had they not had this access to water, the community would be in a desperate situation. Pleasing to hear and to see the new installation, complete with solar-powered water pump. No need to rely on a diesel generator which needs maintenance and fuel. 

these camels looked good...

...others, not so good

While we were there, pastoralists were passing through. Camels were accessing the trough. They can go a couple weeks without water. When they do access water, they drink for a while and then walk around a bit. Then they return to the water to drink some more. It takes a long time for their bodies to absorb the massive amounts of water that they draw upon when back out wandering across the desert.

We continued on to the next town. Here we saw a few things. One of them was a center for women and girls. We met with the leaders who oversee the skills training as well as the other services the facility offers. I've seen dozens and dozens of these over the years in various countries. They play a critical role in communities throughout sub-Saharan Africa. It's a safe place where women and girls can gather, learn, seek protection and access other types of support. Very cool and glad we support this sort of thing.

We pushed on. My body was tiring of the bouncy roads. I felt like my internal organs were no longer in their original locations. I've spent years and years doing this sort of thing but I don't think I have the stamina for it that I used to.

It was obvious that we weren't going to arrive in Garowe before late afternoon/early evening so our convoy stopped in at a roadside restaurant. Over the past few weeks of traveling in Somalia, we've done this a few times. They've all been similar experiences. Given that we were foreigners, we ate in a separate room out view of others to avoid revealing our presence. Service was quick given that they have large vats of rice and boiled goat. Serving sizes are more than generous. It's cheap but, given the rampant inflation in the country, it's not as cheap as it used to be. 

choose your favorite part of the goat

Soon, we were back on the road again. I think my over 17 years in East Africa, eating in a variety of eating establishments, have blessed me with a sufficient number of parasites that prevented me from any intestinal drama on the way. Very important. I would not want to be dealing with that, especially in a convoy of vehicles traveling in remote locations.

That evening we met with staff in Garowe for a couple hours and then called it a day. So tired.

* * *

The next day, it was back on the road at 7am. We headed north to the town of Qardho. I've been to this town a couple times before and it's good to share that little fact with local leaders. You can never visit people enough. They always seem to say that they don't know you or that you never come to their towns. Sometimes people will tell my staff that they have never met me when they have. It's to make a point. They want deference and they want resources.

In this case, the town leadership was all new. In fact, they had been freely election by general suffrage. I was told that it's the first town in Somalia to do such a thing in over 50 years. The mayor and the city council were not only elected, they were relatively gender-balanced and included communities that were not originally from the area (a coded way of saying that they are from other clans). That alone is pretty impressive. Because of this, you could feel a sense of urgency in the way they talked about their plans. They seem to feel a sense of responsibility (and pressure) to deliver in ways that previous "appointed" leadership didn't. It was great to meet with them and I do hope they do well. Hopefully we'll find ways to partner with them.

On the way back, we stopped at a roadside restaurant for some boiled goat and rice. I was sort of hoping to just push through and get back to the office/guesthouse but it was probably wise to stop. Though we had some biscuits and dates in the vehicle to tide us over, I must admit that the home stretch was easier with a full belly.

* * *

That evening I had a call with one of the key news outlets in Sweden. I've been in the news quite a bit lately as we're looking to draw attention to the severe drought and potential famine conditions. This interview took place in the vehicle as we were driving at night in Garowe. Always better to have these discussions while "on the ground". The interviewer likes to draw attention to that fact and, even for me, the stuff you've been witnessing is more vivid in your mind.

The last time I was in Garowe we went out for coffee/tea to a rooftop restaurant. Needless to say, it's a luxury to be able to go out like that in Somalia. Puntland generally offers an environment that is more secure - something that the rest of the country can aspire to. It was also a nice way to cap off a full and challenging trip. 

if you're ever in Garowe...

The place we went to was called "Fridays". I remember smiling the last time since it's taken from the US chain of the same name. In fact in another place the acronym was posted "TGIF". There's a slightly different nuance in the US given that its meant to celebrate the final day of the work week. In Somalia, the work week ends on Thursday so it really should be "Thursdays". No matter. The first day of the weekend also deserves to be celebrated.