In drought-stricken Somaliland, age-old challenges meet WhatsApp
| Ununley, Somaliland
The drought was coming again, and everyone knew it 鈥撀爐he latest manifestation of an ancient, recurring problem that has episodically plagued Somali deserts.
As livestock began to die six months ago, and the parched earth ran dry, a handful of people in this self-declared republic had a novel idea: create a WhatsApp group called Daryeel, 鈥淐aring,鈥� to spread the news of their need.
鈥淣ecessity is the mother of invention,鈥� smiles Ali Mohamoud Kabadhe, one of the group鈥檚 creators. 鈥淭he drought has long existed in the region, but this way of helping is new.鈥�
Little did they know the marriage of a 21st-century social messaging app with a centuries-old problem would transform the fate of their sub-clan. By marshaling the support of fellow clansmen and other donors, the project drew support from as far away as the United States and Britain, providing crucial food and water to nearly 1,000 families.
The Somali clan structure has existed for centuries to keep everyone alive in times of crisis, but the WhatsApp group is a modern version of that time-honored community support. Sitting at his computer in Burco, at the center of Somaliland's drought, Mr. Kabadhe ticks off the statistics:聽600 water trucks have been sent out, and monthly food packages 鈥� rice, sugar, dates, milk, and oil 鈥撀爂iven to 864 families in 39 different villages.
Here in Ununley, a settlement 30 miles to the southeast of Burco, the WhatsApp group helped 10 families with food. Yet the blessings spread much further, as villagers made clear one recent morning when they gathered under the tin awning of a building of white-painted breezeblocks, discussing the effort as some traced designs in the sand with their toes, and others listened appreciatively.
鈥淭he assistance came when we most needed it 鈥撀爄t changed our lives,鈥� says Mohamed Farah, a beneficiary. 鈥淲e would have died without that assistance, just like our livestock. It鈥檚 the most difficult drought we鈥檝e ever seen.鈥�
The local coordinator for 鈥淐aring鈥� is Safiya Hassan Ibrahim, a no-nonsense bundle of efficiency with two cellphones who holds her young son, Mubarak, while speaking of the donations. Her herds have been struck as hard as anyone鈥檚: Of more than 500 sheep and goats, just 40 are left; of 32 camels, only four remain.
鈥淎lmost 100 families did not move, because of the help for 10 families,鈥� says Ms. Ibrahim, noting the ripple effect that the guaranteed support for some had on the wider community, because of sharing and a certainty of supply, no matter how small. 鈥淔ood was the main thing that kept us here鈥�: food that came as the internet spread news of this sub-clan鈥檚 plight.
Life-saving speed
鈥淲hatsApp and [the messaging app] Telegram are revolutionary,鈥� says Jamal Abdi Sarman, the UN Children鈥檚 Fund communication officer in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991 but remains unrecognized. His sub-clan pioneered the project, which has become a model.
Cash can be transferred directly to the group, with details sent via WhatsApp. Somalis are already adept at making direct payments for everything from fuel to food to utilities using their cellphones and a recipient number.
鈥淔rom Australia, from South Africa, from Istanbul, from California, it goes into the same account in Burco,鈥� says Mr. Sarman. 鈥淎nd the speed was what mattered 鈥撀爈ife-saving depends on speed. It increases the speed of mobilization, and increases the speed of delivery, and that saves lives.鈥�
Spread on social media, the 鈥淐aring鈥� group鈥檚 reach took off as quickly, as the drought began decimating their life-sustaining herds of sheep and goats,聽and camels.聽
In the first month, some $20,000 in donations were sent 鈥撀爋ften direct deposits using smartphone apps 鈥撀燼ccording to the creators of the 鈥淐aring鈥� group. The second month $33,000 arrived, and then $50,000. After six months, a total of $255,000 was donated 鈥� demonstrating both a new mechanism for harnessing the Somali diaspora to help, and how it is possible for that help to arrive directly, in real time.
Truckloads of donations were delivered to coordinators in each village,聽and photos taken to prove delivery, which were then uploaded onto WhatsApp and Instagram for donors to see the result of their giving.
鈥淢y clan members are 850 families, and none of them perished 鈥撀爈argely because of this initiative,鈥� says Sarman. 鈥淲hat amazes us was this 21st-century technology to solve problems of those facing age-old challenges. It鈥檚 something new; nobody knew how to make it.鈥�
Aid inspiration
The idea was so successful that other clan groups used it as a model: Messages and photos of need would spread within the initial core WhatsApp group, and then spread further on other social media platforms.
鈥淲hen a person becomes bankrupt, the first thing he faces is a loss of confidence,鈥� says Mohamed Said Aidid, one of the founders of the group.
鈥淭he first month they worried about where to live and to eat,鈥� says Mr. Aidid. 鈥淭he last six months they began to trust us: to wait for assistance, and know it is coming. Now they are very confident [the help will come]. They know they have some people they can count on.鈥�
The next steps are to help replenish livestock, and work on long-term water projects 鈥� and even begin to help traditional herders diversify into farming, and livelihoods that depend less on rain.
鈥淲e are trying to create a pathway to sustainable life,鈥� says Aidid. 鈥淭hat doesn鈥檛 mean we are leaving livestock, but reducing dependence.鈥�
If drought does hit hard again, though, members of this sub-clan and others now know how to help: by taking their phones out of their pockets.
鈥淲e鈥檝e seen droughts coming and going, but this is the first time we鈥檝e seen mobile technology being employed to save lives,鈥� says Sarman.
