Climate Change, Environment, and Livelihoods
HIRDA believes in people and their capacity to make a difference in their own lives. Our Sustainable Livelihoods framework empowers communities to withstand shocks and foster resilience against economic shifts and natural disasters. We take stock of everyday realities to achieve our goal of supporting poor people as they evaluate the possibilities and drawbacks of climate change and its impact on the environment.
HIRDA implements innovative and smart interventions to adapt to climate change. To achieve this, we support livestock management and marketing, fodder production, and the overall improvement of farming systems in areas suitable for rain-fed and irrigated farming and provide support for product storage and marketing. We conduct environmental education to raise awareness on environmental rehabilitation, including the conservation of grazing lands and water sources, as well as small- scale projects to establish protected areas, e.g. tree nurseries and renewable energy.
We also offer alternative income generation in rural and urban areas, including promoting self-employment for women and youth in small- scale businesses through the support of incubators and micro-finance to build self-sufficient communities. Our diaspora remittance programme facilitates the flow of capital and welfare support from Somali immigrants to their kin and communities of origin. Through this support, households are able to recover and receive the start-off income needed to generate and sustain projects.
HIRDA believes in people and their capacity to make a difference in their own lives. Our Sustainable Livelihoods framework empowers communities to withstand shocks and foster resilience against economic shifts and natural disasters. We take stock of everyday realities to achieve our goal of supporting poor people as they evaluate the possibilities and drawbacks of climate change and its impact on the environment.
HIRDA implements innovative and smart interventions to adapt to climate change. To achieve this, we support livestock management and marketing, fodder production, and the overall improvement of farming systems in areas suitable for rain-fed and irrigated farming and provide support for product storage and marketing. We conduct environmental education to raise awareness on environmental rehabilitation, including the conservation of grazing lands and water sources, as well as small- scale projects to establish protected areas, e.g. tree nurseries and renewable energy.
We also offer alternative income generation in rural and urban areas, including promoting self-employment for women and youth in small- scale businesses through the support of incubators and micro-finance to build self-sufficient communities. Our diaspora remittance programme facilitates the flow of capital and welfare support from Somali immigrants to their kin and communities of origin. Through this support, households are able to recover and receive the start-off income needed to generate and sustain projects.
Gender-based Violence
Somalia has experienced long bouts of conflict, and as is common in similar post-conflict situations, cases of gender-based violence continue to be reported. This area remains largely unaddressed in the Somali context as the subject is regarded as quite sensitive. There is, however, urgent need to scale up programming and funding to address this growing concern. HIRDA’s Gender-Based Violence (GBV) interventions aim to protect, treat, care for and offer support to the most vulnerable populations in Somalia through an innovative approach and through making use of technologies as well as through building upon the strengths of beneficiaries. HIRDA has been implementing integrated GBV programs to respond to and prevent GBV amongst internally displaced persons (IDPs) through provision of psychosocial support and medical assistance in partnership with health actors as well as building the capacity of community actors to ensure sustainability.
Sexual Assault
Cases of sexual assault in Somalia are attributed to militia and other armed groups. Additionally, prolonged conflict and associated displacement is often associated with increase in sexual violence and assault especially among women and girls. According to two recent reports, the Report of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict and the Report of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, 2022 saw an almost 80% increase in cases of sexual violence in Somalia as compared to 2021. Among the cases, close to two-thirds reported rape, and the remaining cases included attempted rape, forced marriage, sexual harassment and sexual assault. HIRDA in its program areas focusses on mitigation measures by creating awareness and developing referral pathways together with other partners in the program areas to ensure prevention and redress to the victims of sexual assault.