{"id":11543,"date":"2022-12-20T22:14:34","date_gmt":"2022-12-20T22:14:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sooha.org\/en\/?p=11543"},"modified":"2022-12-24T10:42:20","modified_gmt":"2022-12-24T10:42:20","slug":"displaced-somalis-complain-about-the-high-cost-of-living-in-mogadishu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sooha.org\/en\/2022\/12\/20\/displaced-somalis-complain-about-the-high-cost-of-living-in-mogadishu\/","title":{"rendered":"Displaced Somalis complain about the high cost of living in Mogadishu"},"content":{"rendered":"
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When people newly displaced by drought or conflict arrive in Somalia\u2019s capital Mogadishu, they often begin by asking for assistance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ll move around all the neighbours and collect items,\u201d explains local businesswoman Habibo Ali Haji. \u201cThey\u2019ll knock on each door and ask \u2018do you have anything?\u2019 and use what they get to build a small shelter. In Somali culture, even if you have a small thing to eat and you find a person who is hungry you divide [the food] and give the other half to them. They are very welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the charitable nature of Somali culture is being tested, as rising food prices and high unemployment challenge even those who were once well off.<\/p>\n

Displaced Somalis, forced to leave their rural homes, have been arriving in a steady stream to coastal city Mogadishu for decades. There, they live in cramped settlements, often on private land where they are vulnerable to sudden evictions. Ongoing violence and the latest devastating drought, which has now seen five consecutive failed rainy seasons, means that number has continued to swell.<\/p>\n

By 2019, there were already around half a million displaced Somalis living in Mogadishu, aid organisations say. According to the UN, 1.1 million people have been displaced by drought this year alone and nearly 600,000 by conflict and insecurity. More than 411,000 of them moved to Banadir, the region that Mogadishu is in.<\/p>\n

While they are hoping for a better life, risks remain. Mogadishu, which is home to roughly 2.4 million people, has been repeatedly targeted by militants from the al Qaeda-linked group Al Shabaab, which controls swathes of territory in Somalia. In October, at least 121 people were killed in a double car bombing there, five years after another bombing nearby claimed the lives of more than 580 people. In late November, eight civilians were killed during an attack on the popular Villa Rays hotel.<\/p>\n

Regular life continues. There are traffic jams with rows of red tuktuks, busy markets and packed mosques. Residents say Somalis are resilient. \u201cIf there is an explosion today, tomorrow they will rebuild,\u201d says Dr Ahmed Abdi Aden, deputy commissioner of Somalia\u2019s disaster management agency. The displaced, like everyone else apart from the extremely rich, are forced to move around to look for work, food, healthcare and other necessities.<\/p>\n

Some end up at a health centre in Mogadishu\u2019s Wadajir district, which sees about 130 patients a week: many of them are children suffering from malnutrition. The clinic is supported by Irish charity Concern Worldwide.<\/p>\n

An attendee, Halima Mohamed Ali (36), came to Mogadishu three years ago, travelling from Qoriyoley District in Lower Shabelle, more than 100km away. There, her father owned a farm where her family cultivated maize, tomatoes and sorghum. Her life in Mogadishu is very different.<\/p>\n

Ali says \u201ca lot of complexities\u201d forced her to leave home, \u201cincluding on-and-off conflict\u201d. She developed high blood pressure. \u201cI couldn\u2019t take it any more,\u201d she says. She also wanted access to aid.<\/p>\n

On the road to Mogadishu, Ali\u2019s family was robbed. \u201cWe came here with nothing,\u201d she recalls. Upon arrival, she was helped by relatives and the \u201cgeneral Somali community\u201d, eventually finding accommodation after two months.<\/p>\n

The eight-month-old baby girl in her arms is the youngest of her nine children: the only one who qualifies to receive nutritional care, after being assessed as having malnutrition, because the others are over the age of five.<\/p>\n

Ali\u2019s husband owns a wheelbarrow, which he uses to carry loads for various clients. His small income means the rising costs of food and fuel \u2013 exacerbated by the Ukraine war \u2013 have been \u201cvery hard\u201d to bear, Ali says. \u201cOnly cooking oil and flour is possible to buy, but the rest can\u2019t be bought. We need to eat rice but the price went high so it\u2019s difficult to get. It\u2019s not enough but we have no choice, we manage with whatever we get. There is no work. We receive support but in general there are needy people and the situation is getting worse day by day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also in the clinic is Muslimo Hassan Abdullahi (20), who holds a crying 11-month-old boy \u2013 the youngest of her three children. Abdullahi came to Mogadishu six years ago, from Middle Shabelle. She has come to the clinic to collect a monthly food ration she qualifies for: 6kg of porridge.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t get any food, that\u2019s why I came here. We have no money. We are depending on the World Food Programme. Porridge. It\u2019s not enough,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Nearby is Raliyo Ahmed Mohamed (25), who has brought her 45-day-old son for a polio vaccination. Mohamed also comes from Lower Shabelle, and has been in Mogadishu less than three years.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s okay here, I don\u2019t move around a lot,\u201d she says. \u201cIn general the prices have gone high, we\u2019re not in control but we\u2019re buying what we can. There are many people in need. Everyone you know who fled from his original place is needy with no sufficient income but we are surviving.\u201d Displaced people try to wash clothes, go to markets to beg, or search for any odd jobs they can do, she explains.<\/p>\n

All of the women emphasise that they would like more international humanitarian aid, and are grateful for any help they receive from charitable Somalis too. \u201cPeople are different, some are very welcoming and supportive but some have nothing to support you with, they are just getting by themselves,\u201d says Mohamed.<\/p>\n

Assistance is never guaranteed when Mogadishu\u2019s original residents are struggling as well.<\/p>\n

Haji, the businesswoman, has a shop in the city where she sells clothes, meat and vegetables. The 34-year-old has been in business for eight years. Her husband used to work as a truck driver, but the ongoing conflict in rural areas controlled by Al Shabaab has made it too dangerous for him to keep going. The couple has six children.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sell vegetables and meat,\u201d Haji says. \u201cI used to go to the market to buy and then retail, but now when the drought happens the livestock in the market became very limited and the price went high. The variety of vegetables in the market was also reduced.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, she says, she can afford to buy only a small amount of supplies. Her customers complain that her goods are too expensive and don\u2019t purchase as much.<\/p>\n

A kilogram of camel meat has risen from $3.50 (\u20ac3.30) to $5 or higher, she says, while goat meat has risen from $5 to $6. A 50kg bag of sugar rose from $30 to $45, and a container of cooking oil went from $16 to $50, before dropping to $30.<\/p>\n

Haji used to travel to the countryside herself to buy animals at \u201cthe best price, but now we can\u2019t go there because of insecurity\u201d.<\/p>\n

When she goes to the market she worries that young, unemployed people will rob her. \u201cRobbery exists everywhere,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Her net profit has gone down from highs of $6 a day to $3.50 at most, she says. Her children still attend school, but their meals are no longer \u201cfull food\u201d, just \u201csomething\u2026 to maintain their energy\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are feeling the burden\u2026 It\u2019s a lot of struggle to pay their [school] fees,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Still, Haji has sympathy for Mogadishu\u2019s new arrivals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very aware of a lot of people who are displaced here. When you talk [to them] about their life it\u2019s very low and they are needy,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst of all we desire and request from Allah to support us in this period, particularly the farmers, that\u2019s where we receive vegetables and food [from]. So I wish the drought will dissipate and if enough aid and assistance could be provided from the community it would also be some sort of support\u2026 But in general, if the rain comes the situation will hugely improve.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source: IRISH TIMES\u00a0 \u00a0 Origin: View original<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n
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When people newly displaced by drought or conflict arrive in Somalia\u2019s capital Mogadishu, they often begin by asking for assistance. \u201cThey\u2019ll move around all the neighbours and collect items,\u201d explains local businesswoman Habibo Ali Haji. \u201cThey\u2019ll knock on each door and ask \u2018do you have anything?\u2019 and use what they get to build a small …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,6,1,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-displacement-and-asylum","category-food-security-cluster","category-news","category-reports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t