Revisiting humanitarian programmes in Puntland: pathways to resilience and sustainable growth

Somalia is considered one of the poorest countries in the world in terms of economic growth and human development. Poverty in Somalia is driven by a plethora of interlinked challenges related to climate disasters, high levels of insecurity, persistent political instability and conflict, and weak governance of resources. The cycle of natural disasters such as drought, floods and desert locust swarms are becoming more frequent and severe due to climate change mitigation requiring large amounts in humanitarian and development assistance. According to a report by the Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU), food security in Somalia remains severe with ‘more than 3.7 million people experiencing Crisis or worse (IPC Phase 3 or above) outcomes between August and September 2023’. By the end of this year, this number will likely be around 4.3 million. Somalia has been receiving humanitarian assistance since the collapse of the central government in 1991, but there has been no observable progress towards self-sufficiency – why? However, there are some state governments – including Puntland – that show varying levels of development, growth and stability.

Puntland state government is in the northern part of Somalia, and it has made significant strides in recent years towards stability, development and resilience. Its strategic location, abundant natural resources and a growing commitment to good governance have allowed Puntland to embark on a journey towards sustained development progress. This article will revisit Puntland’s path towards resilience and explore the need for long-term sustainable development initiatives.

Puntland’s background

Puntland covers a significant portion of northern Somalia, spanning roughly one-third of Somalia’s total area. Over the years, Puntland has experienced relative stability compared to other regions in Somalia, allowing opportunities for development to flourish. The government has maintained security and created an enabling environment for investment and economic growth. Infrastructural developments, especially in urban centres such as Garowe, Gardo and Bosaso, can be seen as testament to Puntland’s commitment to modernisation. Some piloted projects became very successful – mainly funded by donors including the World Bank, the African Development Bank, European Union, and many more bilateral and multilateral donors. These projects are implemented by both United Nations (UN) agencies and international non-governmental organisations (Save the Children being the leading one in Puntland) and have made significant life-changing impacts.

The perception that rainwater should not be harvested and utilised has now been changed, and communities have more desire to catch the rainwater, rather than allowing it to run into the Indian Ocean. The government and some donors have now realised the impact made by resilience and sustainability programmes, and how important it is to invest in these types of programmes. More than 25 earth dams have been constructed in recent years in Puntland and have contributed significantly to the environmental protection, climate change mitigation and improved access to water for the community. Financing the building of these dams and maintaining these initiatives will meaningfully reduce recurrent climate shocks and improve livestock and agriculture production.

Current situation and need for holistic resilience programmes

Despite this progress, Puntland still faces challenges such as recurrent droughts, high levels of unemployment and a lack of necessary infrastructure to support sustainable economic development. Dry seasons and water shortages are persistent problems. The lack of rain restricts pastoralists from meeting their livestock’s water needs, which in turn diminishes their main source of livelihood and the single largest contributor to Somalia’s economy. Water shortages across Somalia also create acute stress and add to community tensions – no small matter in a country with internally displaced persons (IDPs) recovering from civil war. This necessitates a shift from short-term humanitarian assistance to resilience programmes that build communities’ capacity to withstand shocks and ensure long-term development. Investing in infrastructure, education, healthcare and agriculture will help build networks of resilience and prepare communities for potential disasters.

The United Nations (UN) defines ‘resilience’ as ‘the ability of a system, community or society exposed to hazards to resist, absorb, accommodate, adapt to, transform and recover from the effects of a hazard in a timely and efficient manner’. Thus, resilience programmes are defined as programmes focused on reducing risks, enhancing adaptive capacity, helping communities adapt, and facilitating recovery and rehabilitation from shocks.

The multifaceted situation in Puntland requires a holistic resilience approach. Of the roughly 3 million inhabitants of Puntland, a staggering 605,570 are faced with acute food insecurity, and an alarming 28,320 are facing emergency levels of food insecurity. Disturbingly, the trend of escalating humanitarian needs has persisted over the past decade, while available funding has steadily diminished. This funding decline is particularly concerning given Somalia’s challenging circumstances – it is one of Africa’s most impoverished nations. A vast majority, nearly 70% of its population, subsists below the international poverty line (set at earnings of less than $2.15 a day). Poverty is even more pronounced in the countryside, particularly among itinerant pastoralist communities.

Somalia’s complex sociopolitical and economic landscape makes the attainment of sustainable solutions particularly challenging, especially in critical service delivery sectors such as health, nutrition and education. These sectors desperately require consistent government budgetary support for sustained impact. Given the existing challenges in these areas, it’s evident that achieving long-lasting solutions without the government’s active involvement remains an uphill task.

Success of resilience programmes in Puntland

One striking example of resilience programming in Puntland in 2019 is the project funded by European Union and implemented by Save the Children. This project saw the construction of three earth dams in the Nugal, Bari and Sanaag regions. The selected sites had no access to water and the inhabitants of these regions used to travel nearly 100 kilometres to fetch water. These earth dams became a vital and consistent water source for many families and their livestock, mitigating the disastrous water scarcities during the droughts. Resilience programmes like this one strengthen community coping mechanisms, allowing them to easily harvest water for use in farming.

Another good example is the Biyoole project, which involved the construction of earth dams to provide water for agriculture and livestock. The initiative, funded by the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), has successfully enabled pastoral communities to adapt to climatic challenges and improve their livelihoods. Such programmes are crucial in establishing sustainable development pathways that benefit both Puntland’s economy and its people.

In Puntland, 20 minutes of rainfall in May this year, just as the Rabaable sand dam was finished, sustained the community until September, allowing them to irrigate and cultivate their farms, take care of their livestock, and earn a livelihood by, for example, selling the dates they grow to nearby towns. They were able to provide water for the building of an asphalt road into Garowe, Puntland’s administrative capital. The road will help link their farming with larger markets.

Chantal Richey, ‘Turning sand to water: the Biyoole Project in Somalia’

How to shift from short-term humanitarian assistance to resilience programmes

Puntland has made remarkable strides in achieving stability, economic growth and resilience. However, to sustain these gains and promote long-term development, there is a need to shift from short-term humanitarian assistance to resilience programmes. By investing in infrastructure, agriculture, education and employment opportunities, Puntland should build a foundation for a prosperous and resilient region. With careful planning and strategic partnerships, Puntland should continue the path of progress and achieve its full potential, build on past achievements, and chart a course for the next decade. The Puntland government and donors have very important roles in effecting a shift from short-term humanitarian assistance to more sustainable resilience programmes in the region. In this case, the government, donors and implementing partners should sit together, reflect on what has been achieved or not achieved in recent years, rethink the problem from a holistic viewpoint, review policies and set a new direction for Puntland.

The way forward: recommendations for building resilience and sustainable development in Puntland, Somalia

Recommendations for the government of Puntland:

• Set a clear and robust policy framework. The government should focus on establishing policies that prioritise sustainable resilience programmes in the region. These policies will serve as guiding principles of the government’s actions and interventions. The framework should also categorise which situations are humanitarian situations, requiring humanitarian assistance, and minimise continual unconditional cash transfers. These policies may include a national resilience and sustainable development policy and a climate change adaptation policy. Focusing on more resilience and integrated programmes will make a significant impact on people, in particular children, by building the capacity of the community and government, addressing multiple challenges, and contributing to the overall development of the country’s production. Puntland should set the bar for other state governments, and the federal government, by enforcing laws and policies that will boost the economy and improve the food security of people in need.
• Allocate sufficient resources. Enough money should be set aside in the government’s fiscal budget to facilitate the shift from short-term programmes to sustainable ones. This fund would enable the government to establish its own sustainable and resilience programmes not financed by donors. This is feasible, as funds can be reallocated from other initiatives, such as reconstruction. Allocated funds can also be utilised to capacitate government staff and the community to sustain the gains made.
• Invest in productive sectors. There are sectors where long-term, sustainable interventions can be pursued with tangible results. For instance, Puntland’s pastoral and agropastoral communities can benefit from investments in alternative livelihood avenues. The government should invest more in productive sectors, e.g., agriculture, livestock, renewable energy and fishery. More strategic water resource points can be developed and enhanced to support these communities, ensuring consistent water availability even during dry spells. Embracing renewable energy solutions can further amplify Puntland’s population resilience. In essence, while challenges are manifold, with the right strategies and investments, Puntland can chart a path towards a more sustainable and prosperous future.
• Establish a coordination platform. There is a need to exchange information and share updates of the progress made by government ministries as well as donors and international implementing agencies. Creating a strategic coordination platform would be the right forum to provide guidance to all stakeholders, review challenges and lessons learnt, and evaluate who is doing what and where.
• Establish research centres. Research centres solely focused on social issues generally and sustainable programmes specifically could examine the impact made by these programmes on different communities and how they have changed the economy, and also assess other social problems. Research centres could be incorporated in the Puntland statistics department, which has the capacity to carry out such research.

Recommendations for donors:

• Support sustainable development programmes. Humanitarian issues across Somalia can only be addressed when multiple shocks are responded to adequately and appropriately. Donors should bring their priorities in line with the federal government’s national and Puntland State Government’s development plans. They should also unconditionally support the transition from short-term programmes to sustainable resilience programmes.
• Provide long-term funding. Allocating long-term funding to Puntland really matters at this time. Scenarios mentioned above are real examples of what a little donated money has done for the region and showcases the impact made so far on the ground. Financing long-term sustainable resilience programmes would change the lives of vulnerable groups (such as children and mothers) and communities as a whole. It would also contribute to the development of the country’s economy. Prioritising the Puntland government would sustain the gains made already and establish more opportunity to address future climate shocks.
• Ringfence funding for sustainable development programmes. Donors should require the government to allocate a specific percentage of the overall budget towards sustainable development programmes and other social services. Subjecting all funds to this condition may exert pressure on the government to make commitments and provide necessary resources to implement, sustain and expand these initiatives. Putting attention on this issue would bring an immediate solution to unresolved problems, reduce fatigue felt by international communities’ programmes in Somalia, and put pressure to the state government to rethink its priorities.

Disclaimer: The views written in this article don’t represent the views of my organisation.

Mohamed Assair is currently Deputy Area Representative with Save The Children on its Puntland programmes.