In the riverine villages of Yontoy, Haji Weyne, and Bula Gaduud, the rhythm of life is dictated by the sky. In late 2025, that rhythm failed. Failed rains transformed vibrant grazing lands into parched corridors, while extreme heat devastated farms. With forecasts now indicating that no significant rainfall is expected until at least April 2026, the drought’s impact is deepening for families already on the edge of survival.
As livestock weakens and traditional incomes vanish, conventional aid is no longer enough. Communities need economic anchors: systems that provide immediate relief while building the endurance needed to survive a prolonged crisis. This is the core of the Resilient Initiative for Sustainability and Empowerment in Kismayo District (RISE Kismayo). While the broader project—funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS)—integrates Health, WASH, and Food Security and Livelihoods (FSL) components, this strategic intervention specifically addresses one priority: increasing sustainable agro-pastoral production and livelihood diversification for vulnerable households.
Revitalizing the Village Market: The Multiplier Effect
For many in Yontoy, local shops are the heartbeat of the community. Yet, drought creates a vicious cycle: as household incomes drop, shopkeepers lose their capital, shelves go empty, and villagers are forced to spend their remaining cash on expensive transport to Kismayo town just to find basic goods.
Sahara Osman, a shop owner and single mother of six, found herself caught in this spiral. Without stock to meet her customers’ needs, her business became dormant, leaving her family without income and her neighbors without a local source of food. Through the RISE Kismayo program, Sahara was one of 90 entrepreneurs selected to receive a $500 business grant, with an initial installment of $300 already disbursed.
Sahra in her shop
This amount is transformative. It allowed Sahara to restock sugar, rice, pasta, wheat flour, cooking oil, milk powder, bread, beans, and hygiene essentials, turning her shop back into a functioning market hub. This financial injection is paired with structural support to ensure long-term viability; entrepreneurs receive small business management training, dedicated coaching, and mentorship. Furthermore, the program bridges the gap between rural commerce and the formal financial system by linking shopkeepers to banks, helping them open accounts and establishing a pathway for potential future credit.
Profit results demonstrate rapid stabilization: entrepreneurs like Sahara now earn approximately $15 in daily profit. Beyond her own family, a “multiplier effect” has taken hold; neighbors save time and money by shopping locally, keeping currency circulating within the village rather than leaking out to distant urban centers.
Protecting the Primary Asset: Veterinary Care as a Safety Net
While small businesses provide cash flow, livestock remains the primary source of income for agro-pastoral households. In the Juba River region, the drought brings a dangerous challenge: the high density of animals along the riverbanks creates a breeding ground for infectious diseases. For local families, losing a goat to a preventable disease isn’t just a loss of property; it is the loss of their children’s milk and their future security.
To safeguard these assets, Action Against Hunger has professionalized the role of Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs). These are trained technicians equipped with high-quality medicines sourced through private veterinary partnerships. In Yontoy, Abdikadir Abdikarim is one of the specialized CAHWs at the forefront. On average, a worker like Abdikadir treats about 100 animals a day. Across the program’s five dedicated workers, the team treats roughly 15,000 animals per month, significantly reducing mortality rates.
Linked to a private veterinary pharmacy in Kismayo, the CAHWs have sustainable access to quality inputs through an established line of credit. This “buy now, pay later” linkage has transformed their incomes and the community’s access to vital health services.
Impact Beyond the Data
The depth of this program is best measured by the shift in community confidence. Abdullahi, a livestock owner, describes the anxiety that defines life during a drought: “The fear of an entire herd being wiped out by an outbreak was a constant psychological burden.” However, after the treatment provided by the CAHWs, his animals recovered.
Healthier animals mean continued milk production, which directly correlates to lower malnutrition rates among children—a clear synergy with the Action Against Hunger’s broader health goals in Somalia. When the goats are healthy and shops like Sahara’s are stocked, the community’s resilience moves from a buzzword to a lived reality.
Why This Model Works
The success in Kismayo’s outskirts lies in an integrated design that simultaneously addresses capital, protection, and long-term systems. By combining grants and capacity-building through mentorship, the project provides knowledge and an initial spark to restart stalled micro-economies. This is reinforced by asset protection, where specialized veterinary teams act as a shield against the catastrophic loss of livestock—the backbone of rural wealth. Finally, the model is anchored in sustainability and formalization; by linking CAHWs to private pharmacies and shopkeepers to formal banks, the project ensures that once the formal cycle ends, the market structures and financial pathways remain firmly in place.
The Long Road Ahead
As the grueling wait for the April 2026 rains continues, months of extreme heat and dry spells drag on. However, these communities are not facing this long, difficult road empty-handed. They are weathering the crisis with stocked shops, protected herds, and a proven model for enduring the harshest of climates. For the families of Yontoy, Haji Weyne, and Bula Gaduud, the RISE Kismayo project has provided more than just aid; it has established a foundation for survival that must sustain them through the long months until the clouds finally break.
