Somalia - Increased Resilience of Vulnerable Households, Especially Women and Youth, in the face of climate shocks

Projections indicate Somalia faces a nearly 2°C increase in maximum daily temperatures, threatening crop productivity thresholds and livestock welfare even further. To cope with climate-related impacts on livelihood, communities adapt to mechanisms that are detrimental to the environment. An assessment by FAO’s SWALIM revealed that the causes of land degradation in Somalia include overgrazing, deforestation for fuelwood and charcoal production, and poor agronomic practices. Other causes were the limited use of soil and water conservation practices in crop production areas and the failure to maintain land degradation control infrastructure. As a result, from 2001 to 2020, Somalia lost 4.12 kha of tree cover, equivalent to a 4.7% decrease in tree cover.

In Somalia's 2013 National Adaptation Programme of Action on Climate Change (NAPA), the FGS concluded that extreme weather events exacerbated poverty by jeopardizing livelihoods. This finding was reiterated in the January 2020 FGS-AU-UN Joint Threat Assessment of Somalia. The NAPA reports highlight how droughts fuel herder-farmer conflicts due to resource competition. Moreover, the loss of income from agriculture and pastoralism can also increase the risks of violence, particularly among young people who may turn to armed groups as a means of survival. Further, it also has a direct effect on widening the gender gap among women in all its forms.

Somali women face various barriers that keep them from advancing in livelihood building. Cultural norms, influenced by Islamic practices, prevent women from engaging in certain forms of income-generating activities, as they are primarily tasked with household chores and caregiving duties. The World Bank reports that only 37 percent of women participate in the labor market compared to 58 percent of men. Income inequality further exacerbates the gender gap, with 53.2 percent of women earning less than USD 20 per month compared to 40.6 percent of men. Additionally, a significant proportion of women (79.2 percent) reported that they have no savings.

The patriarchal nature of Somali culture, deeply rooted in the clan system, compounds the challenges faced by women. Somalia has one of the highest Gender Inequality Index scores in the world at 0.776, placing the country 4th globally in terms of gender disparity. The Gender Assessment conducted by USAID in 2020 pointed out the importance of women’s roles in resilience, yet they are systematically excluded from decision-making and have less power and participation in economic, educational, and political spheres.

In recent years, the Somali Government has made progress in its efforts towards social inclusion and gender equality, developing policy frameworks such as the National Gender Policy and the National Development Plan (NDP-9), as well as key legislation such as the draft Sexual Offenses and FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) Bills. Nonetheless, gender inequality remains stubbornly entrenched at the community level, and without a gender-transformative approach, Somalia risks overlooking the needs and potential of half its population in building resilient communities and fostering sustainable development.