Somalia Isack
Due to the drought that affected her village and Somalia at large, her 15 goats died from dehydration due to no water and pasture.
What Makes Me Proud To Be in The Humanitarian Field
There was a time I was working within the monitoring team conducting monitoring activity for the Cash Based Transfer (CBT) programme in the Puntland State of Somalia. I met a woman by the name of Amina Ali who was an Agropastoralist with five children. Due to the drought that affected her village and Somalia at large, her 15 goats died from dehydration due to no water and pasture. She was forced to move to another village to receive humanitarian assistance as she needed to feed her family. With continuous monitoring and beneficiary sensitisation, the project led to the rehabilitation of the water sources and vegetable gardens.
Amina’s garden was replenished with enough vegetables and tomatoes for her family as well as enough to sell to her neighbours. From the money she made selling her produce, she was able to buy a goat and improve her food insecurity. Being involved in these kinds of cases puts a smile on my face and makes me proud to be a part of a team that is changing and saving lives.
At the end of each working day, I always leave feeling proud and motivated by the fact that I’ve helped make a difference in the lives of my community. Seeing the vulnerable and marginalised families have smiles on their faces after being provided with shelter and food is what makes me look forward to work. I love watching them become more resilient in a dignified manner.
The Challenges Faced
Working in Somalia and the larger Horn of Africa, you face many challenges. The biggest challenge being insecurity and interclan wars which increases the risk of kidnappings. However, personal safety training and adherence to security protocols are followed to the core. Targeted communities often have corrupt leaders who plan to divert assistance. In these cases, I always emphasise accountability at the community level during the targeting and implementation of humanitarian assistance.
The Support from CTG
After joining CTG, I gathered a wealth of knowledge and experience related to planning, monitoring, reporting and dissemination after attending various capacity development workshops. CTG has also given me the opportunity to learn from free online courses on their CTG Learning platform which has helped me grow tremendously.
Working in conflict-affected and fragile regions of Somalia and the Horn of Africa requires a person who is confident and able to work and deal with different cultures and traditions within communities.
What it Takes To Work in Humanitarian Aid
Working in conflict-affected and fragile regions of Somalia and the Horn of Africa requires a person who is confident. You need to be able to work and deal with different cultures and traditions within communities. You need to be bold, and fearless and have the passion to serve conflict-affected communities.
When I’m not working, I love to travel and read inspirational and motivational books. My current favourite is “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen R. Covey.
