By: Ali Osman
Horseed Media
On Thursday, a press release by Puntland authorities called for more aid from the international community and aid agencies in drought effected areas, in Karkaar region.
Osman Buh, the Mayor of Gardo city, the regional capital, told Horseed Media, that lack of water is severely effecting the livelihoods of many pastoral people and also people in major towns including, Gardo city.
“…most of the water wells are drying up,… the equipment in water wells are rusty ….while we still endure the prolonged drought in the region….” Said Osman Buh, adding that there was no sufficient waterfall from the latest G’u rain-season, putting more pressure on the remaining water wells in Gardo.
Eng.Abdi Said Osman, the manager of HODMAN, water company in Gardo, says there is lack of equipment in most water stations.
Eng.Abdi, told Horseed Media that they were doing what they could, to supply water to the thousands of cattle and pastoral people coming from other drought effected regions. But he says there is simply no enough water for everyone.
“….the main water station used to produce 60M3 per day,…now it is down to 40M3 per day. while the need is much higher up to 120M3 per day…” says Eng.Abdi, manager of Hodman water company.
Earlier this year, the Food Security Analysis Unit of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO/FSAU) for Somalia warned that drought-affected populations in Somalia, faced a continuing deterioration in their food security and nutritional situation as a result of the unusually prolonged and harsh dry ‘Jilaal’ season.
Horseed Media
IRIN NEWS/SOMALIA
bro Ahmed
Wasting your meagre resources on parades is completely out of order in my opinion, even for half an hour, when few miles down the road people and animals are suffering simply for the lack of water.
You cannot keep pleading for international help when you’re wasting your own resources on pointless parades. What about the expenses that faroole and his team are spending on hotels and travels for the last seven weeks?
How many water points can that repair in this difficult time?
justhought, well these miltary parades are good, it shows how organized the puntland administration is and it is only once a year event so it is not big deal.
But they need to speak to u.n who did promise to help provide assistance in drought measures and also health measures recently. So now it is up to puntland to manage that properly and make sure it reaches the proper places it is required. That is the act of good governance.
We need to plan for droughts, it will never go away and be factor of life in the horn of africa. We need to look at investing in cloud-seeding projects or investigate some other method to deal with this adequately.
But ignoring it wont make it go away, drought is factor of life, puntland needs to open its eyes up and see the best way to manage with it.
Why is puntland administration pleading for assistance when everyone knows that the administration is wasting considerable resources on soviet style parade to celebrate the administration conception? Where is the logic in that?