“In the flood, my family lost essential assets like foodstuff, sleeping material and a donkey which was our source of livelihood. While in a desperate situation, save the children support came at the right time as we received food and $120 cash grant. We used the money to buy essential things we lost like foodstuffs beds and mattresses and the food helped to sustain our family needs since our food was swept by the flood.”

Fifty-two years old Nasra* is a mother of eight children, along with her husband and children they have been residing in an internally displaced people’s (IDP) camp in Baidoa district – southern Somalia since 2018.

Prior to moving to the IDP camp, Nasra* family lived in a village located 60km away from Baidoa district. Their livelihood depended on selling charcoal and managing domestic livestock, mainly goats and cows, which provided milk and meat for household consumption. They also sold the animal produce in the market to meet their family's needs, including food items like sugar and rice, as well as clothing and utensils. Nasra* mentioned that they would typically earn around $6 a day from selling animal produce.

In 2018, a severe drought struck their village and its surrounding, forcing them to flee to a better area after they lost their livestock and only managed to save their donkey and its cart. This compelled them to flee in search of a better area. Nasra* and her family covered a 60km journey in a day; they used the donkey cart to carry their belongings such as house materials like sticks, plastics, utensils and settled in the IDP camp.

At the Camp, Nasra* was supported by her neighbours to build a makeshift house made of sticks and rages. To sustain their livelihoods, her husband engaged in manual labor, such as digging toilet holes or sometimes he would do construction work. Their eldest son helped by fetching water and selling it, while Nasra* would occasionally gathers and sells grass from nearby farms to make ends meet. She mentioned that they typically earn an average of $10 a day.

Unfortunately, in late October 2023, Nasra*'s family become a victim of the flash floods caused by El Nino, resulting in the loss of crucial assets like food supplies, bedding, and clothing, as well as the tragic death of their donkey. This further disrupted the family's means of supporting themselves.

After two months of residing in a higher ground within the IDP camp following the floodwaters' subsidizing, the family reclaimed their previous position and with support from their neighbours they were able to rebuild their makeshift house.

Luckily, the family was among the 957 households that beneficiated from the Humanitarian Fund (HF) project implemented by the Save the Children; targeting El Nino affected population for one round multipurpose cash disbursement of $120. Additionally, they received food assistance from the protection sector, including 25kg of rice, wheat flour, sugar, and milk to ease the flood's impact.

Nasra* expressed deep gratitude for the support received, mentioning that the cash grant enabled them to replace some of their lost assets, including purchasing beds, mattresses, and essential food supplies. She also appreciated the timely food assistance received during their most challenging times.

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Nasra*’s Story

“My name is Nasra*, I am 52 years old. I have eight children: 5 boys and 3 girls all aged between 20 years and 5 years old”.

“Together with my children and husband, we all now live in a makeshift house in this IDP camp. Before, we moved here, we used to reside in a village; 60km away from Baidoa town”.

“Back in our village, my husband used to burn charcoal and sell. We also had 15 goats and 5 cows, which we used their produces like milk and meat as a food and sometimes sell the produces in the market to sustain our daily livings”.

“In an average sale of the produce, we would sale the animal produce and get around $6 which we would use the money to buy food items like rice sugar or clothing’s.

“In 2018, severe drought hit our village and its surrounding areas. Our livestock did not have any pasture to feed on, water also become scarcity and we lost all our livestock. We only managed to save a donkey and its cart”.

“We used a donkey cart to carry our belongings for one-day journey to Baidoa town and settled at this IDP camp. Here in the camp, my husband worked in constructions while my elder son worked as donkey cat rider to fetch water and sell”.

“At most of the time I did stay at home doing domestic chores but, for sometimes I go to neighbours’ farms to fetch grass and sell. On averagely, we get a lump sum of 10 dollars a day that we utilize to cater for our daily livings”.

“Some months ago, flash floods affected my family and lost very important assets like foodstuffs, beds, mattresses and donkey; they were all swept by the flood. This has left us desperate as we missed our food, sleeping material and source of livelihood, which was the donkey”.

“It was my fortune that I become part of the beneficiaries selected by the Community relief committees after they visited our camp with Save the Children staff. The Community relief committee informed us that we should be receiving 120 cash grants for 1 month”.

“In December 2023, I received 120 USD as a cash grant. This has helped us a lot, as I used the cash grant to reclaim some of my lost assets. I used the money to buy foodstuffs, beds, mattresses, and a portion to pay Islamic school fees for three of my children”.

“I am very thankful to Save the Children for the support they gave me in the most need time.in addition, I also received food from Save the Children during the flood i.e. 25kg of Rice, Wheat flour, Sugar, and milk. Now we have good sleeping materials and resumed normal life where I do help domestic chores while my son and husband work for us.”

Background / Project information

Save the children have implemented Humanitarian fund (HF) project to mitigate flood risk for the affected population. The project targeted 957 households affected by the El Nino flash flood in Baidoa town to assist cope with the dilapidated situation caused by the flood. The project seeks to improve the living standard of the vulnerable people by providing one round multipurpose cash grant at the rate of 120 USD.