When drought swept across Marsabit County in 2022, the toll was catastrophic. In the villages of Antut and Qoloba in Moyale Sub-county, entire livestock herds were wiped out, leaving many households with no source of food or income. Children, the elderly, pregnant, and lactating women were most at risk of malnutrition. As desperation grew, so did the tension between the Borana and Gabra communities. The two communities have a history of inter-communal conflict where they raid each other’s manyatta and get away with livestock. Amid the despair, a restocking initiative brought a glimmer of recovery. To stabilize pastoralist livelihoods and support peaceful coexistence, Welthungerhilfe (WHH) through SRAPLEA 2 project and with funding support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), supported PACIDA to distribute small livestock specifically, drought-resistant hybrid goats to affected households. “Restocking was selected…

Kurfa Umuro Katelo, a 35-year-old resident of Malabot Centre in Marsabit County, lives with her family of five Chari village, North Horr, Marsabit County. This is a village that borne the brunt of the vagaries of climate change: from cycles of prolonged drought to devastating floods, Kurfa knows all too well. Between the month of May and June, Chari village saw the most devastating floods in recent history. Kurfa’s traditional house was totally destroyed. She watched helplessly as her belongings, including utensils and water containers, were swept away. Worse still, the floods claimed a significant number of her livestock kept just after her family had relocated the animals for grazing. “More than half of our livestock were swept away, only a few were rescued. This really broke every fighting spirit that we had since we were just starting to rebuild…

As part of his introductory visit to PACIDA and Malteser International (MI) projects, the newly appointed MI Country Director, Manuel Lackmaier, was joined by PACIDA’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Patrick Katelo, and the joint MI/PACIDA team for a field mission to Illeret.  The team oversaw the distribution of emergency food aid during the third and fourth cycles, reaching 200 of the most vulnerable households. Each household received maize flour, cooking oil, salt, beans and maize.  Manuel Lackmaier appreciated the ongoing partnership between the community and PACIDA which started in 2011. Katelo called on the community to continue maintaining peace between the Dasaanach and Gabras for development purposes in the area highlighting the peace accord signed weeks ago between the two communities. The team visited the Kutur model farm in Kalacha, Marsabit County. The farm empowers local pastoralists on good management…