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You are at:Home»Tech and Solutions»UNDP’s New Weather App Helps Somali
Pastoralists 


UNDP’S NEW WEATHER APP HELPS SOMALI PASTORALISTS 

0
By Staff Reports on October 23, 2020 Tech and Solutions

SEATTLE, Washington — The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the
Somali Government invested $10 million in an app that helps Somalis prepare for
extreme weather changes occurring in their area. In recent years, Somalia has
experienced rapid floods followed by droughts that have affected rural
communities, especially Somali pastoralists. UNDP’s new app is the first of its
kind in Sub-Saharan Africa and is aiding Somali pastoralists and citizens alike.

SOMALI PASTORALISTS AND WEATHER DISASTERS

Pastoralists require the right amount of rain to create grazing areas for
livestock. Beyond cattle, pastoralists do not have any other means of obtaining
money. In Somalia, 60% of the population are pastoralists.

Water management is essential in Somalia because of multiple droughts in the
area. From 2010 to 2012, 260,000 people died because of severe droughts in
Somalia. Water shortage is also a significant challenge for Somali pastoralists,
as well as Sub-Saharan African citizens.

THE UNDP APP: AIDING PEOPLE THROUGH WEATHER DISASTERS

UNDP’s new app works through the use of satellites and weather stations. Once an
extreme weather change is detected, mobile phones receive an alert about any
dangers in the area. Despite the difficulty of obtaining mobile phones in
Sub-Saharan Africa, a 2013 survey by Gallup and a U.S. federal agency, called
the Broadcasting Board of Directors, concluded that seven out of 10 Somalis
owned a cellular phone.

Since phone coverage in Somalia is fairly vast, it is far easier to get
important information to people through mobile apps. Moreover, approximately 50%
of Somali pastoralists use cellular phones. As such, these essential alerts can
quickly be sent to communities most affected by weather changes and its dangers.

The app will also inform the pastoralists of immediate water sources during
droughts.

THE APP’S EFFECTIVENESS IN SOMALIA

Since some pastoralists do not have cellular phones, it can be difficult to warn
them of weather conditions. Most of Somalia’s cellular services are centered in
urban areas. As such, tracking pastoralists based on their nomadic lifestyle is
a complicated task.

However, UNDP’s initiative also provides pastoralists with essential skills,
such as creating reservoirs to save water and assembling better tracking systems
to look for extreme weather changes. Through gradual progress, UNDP and the
Somali Government’s efforts led to fewer deaths in 2019. According to the
government, the U.N. division’s efforts helped approximately 360,000 farmers and
pastoralists.

THE EFFECTS OF DROUGHTS AND EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS

If pastoralists cannot produce food from their cattle, it can persuade younger
pastoralists to join terrorist organizations to meet basic necessities, such as
shelter, food and water. Al-Shabaab, a militaristic terrorist group, has a large
presence in Somalia because of poverty in rural areas. According to the 2012
Somalia Human Development Report, approximately 81% of Somalis live in poverty.

The extreme weather conditions put Somalis at risk of taking part in terrorist
activities due to a lack of resources and economic and food insecurity.
Moreover, Somalia is not a significant contributor to carbon dioxide emissions,
which influences extreme weather and climate events. Instead, the country is
affected by the top global carbon dioxide contributors, including the United
States, China, and India.

The socio-economic conditions in Somalia may worsen if extreme weather changes
continue in the area. This is a significant problem for Somalia’s economy and
Somalis’ quality of life, as 75% of Somalis rely on stable weather for their
jobs. Only about 25% of people in Somalia live in urban centers. Since Somalis
are mostly pastoralists or farmers, rain seasons are especially critical for
producing food.

LOOKING AHEAD

The issue of extreme weather events adds to Somalia’s ongoing civil unrest and
its weak government system. However, the UNDP hopes that these new resources
will help disadvantaged communities prepare for extreme weather changes and save
cattle from floods or droughts. Somalis are already using the app on a trial run
to figure out where to direct cattle in times of drought. Despite the prevalent
digital divide, the trial run has shown that new technologies make it easier for
nomadic people to find resources. The UNDP project will run for four years,
providing rural communities with essential information and skills to better
fight the extreme weather and climate changes.

—Sarah Litchney
Photo: Flickr

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