Muhubo, a 31-year-old pastoralist mother of seven children, left her home because of the current drought in Somalia. She owned 220 goats but recalls the situation in their settlement drastically changing; the rainy seasons were failing until her livestock started dying— she was left with nothing. Muhubo moved from one location to another, hoping she would find pasture and water for her livestock. 

 One day, the family decided to go to the nearest town and reached the outskirts of a village in eastern Somalia. In this village, many families who fled the drought have arrived, and they depend on the support of local villagers. Since the beginning of the year, Save the Children Somalia programme has responded to the Humanitarian crisis in the country, which is one of the worst in Somalia's history. Since Janaury 2022, We have reached over 873,000 people with clean water, food, education, shelter and health services. In addition, we have provided clear water to over 218,000 families in Somalia. 

Muhoba's story:

 "I am a mother of seven children, two girls and five boys. When drought hit our settlement, we decided to move to where we could get water and pasture for our livestock-- we moved from one place to another. 

"We had 220 goats, and we lost most of them. We had to walk away and flee to feed our children and left behind our goats since they were weak and had no chance to survive in this prolonged drought."

"That forced us to come near villages where there is water." 

"People here were very welcoming, we got help from a relative who was allowed to live in this house, and they gave us food and water…We couldn't survive without their help."

 "Before the drought changed everything, we had a comfortable life where we could milk our livestock, eat their meat or sell them. We had enough food for a long time because of goats."

 "Even in the villages, access to clean water has become a challenge. We rely on Water catchments, and they dry up. Those who can afford it pay 200 litres of water for 10 dollars, which we can't spend."

"Water scarcity was a serious problem in my community before Save the Children started in water trucks, but as you can see now, we have plenty of water to drink, wash our clothes, and cook our meals with."

Names have been changed to protect identity.