Nur Magan Mahdi and his family of 11 arrived in Buleburde district in Hiran region on June 10 this year.

The farming family, who live in the village of Maralay, 3km from Buleburde, said the main reason for their displacement was that the canals they were irrigating had been destroyed by the flooding of the Shabelle River in recent years.

Agricultural irrigation canals made of sand were destroyed by floodwaters on the sides, causing water to seep into the fields.

Nur said the last time he harvested was in November 2020. In January this year he planted a variety of crops such as tomatoes, maize and beans but dried up after the canal failed to deliver water, as his six-hectare farm was 4 kilometers from the river.

“I was a poor man who relied on crops. I had a pump to draw water from the river but it was flooded,” Nur said.

“The canal was destroyed by the floods, so I decided to stop planting, and I moved out of the area,” Nur said again.

He now manages his family’s livelihood with a $ 4 a month rental car, which delivers goods to neighborhoods when people shop and earn a dollar a day.

“I am not happy with this job. I have no interest in it. I have no other choice but to earn a living. If I could find someone to help me, I would like to return to my farm,” said Nur Magan.

He added that the canal has been in use since the federal government, and noted that it has been repaired at least six times in the past few years but has been affected by floods.

Nur said the lack of resources faced by farmers has led to improved canals as locusts and floods have severely affected them.

Nur, who used to earn a full dollar in the harvest, now says he owes $ 160 to invest in the latest dry season.

Aden Abdulle Jim’ale, one of the farmers affected, said he was now farming with a relative after his farm in Mareegley, 7km from the town, failed to reach the water. 

The relative said he had repaired the irrigation canal and helped plant part of it to manage his family’s life.

His family’s livelihood is now dependent on a loan from a relative, and Adan hopes to repay the $ 950 loan he has spent in the last three months for the current crop.

Nur Mohamed Kuuli, deputy director of the Bulaburde district farmers’ association, said 68 canals were destroyed by repeated floods. He added that six of them, have improved on their own.

He noted that 700 farming families were affected by the floods which forced them to flee as they did not plant anything.

“The rains are low and the mountainous fields are small so we do not expect good crops to be harvested this year,” Nur said.

Source: Radio Ergo