Sustainable Livelihoods – Resilient Communities “Alleviation of Poverty”
Globally, recent Statistics reveal that the population of Sub-Saharan Africa, 47% is living on $1.25 or less a day. While growth in the region as a whole has continued to improve in recent years, that growth has not reached those most in need, they are still much more vulnerable to hunger and poverty. The principal causes of poverty in Somalia have been and continue to be environmental factors such as drought and climate change, conflict, inequality, hunger, limited resources and population growth,” which naturally led to constant instability, violence and massive population displacement that have decreased people’s livelihood. As result, substantive economic progress has been slow because of the prolonged draught, conflict and the depth of the poverty experienced by Somalia, whereas food prices continue to rise sharply and humanitarian assistance is not scaled up adequately.
In terms of demographics, rates of poverty are three times higher in rural than in cities, largely due to the deplorable state of rural infrastructure, limited rural opportunities, high youth unemployment and limited access to quality education. Furthermore, the burden of poverty continues to fall disproportionately on women, whose work both in and outside of the home tends to be undervalued with limited access to productive assets. This situation requires not only sustained and at-scale humanitarian assistance but also transformative actions to sustainably improve food and water security, reduce people’s vulnerability to shocks and stresses.
Our Approach
In light of these challenges, ANPPCAN’s specific focus areas are small-scale entrepreneurship and employment, with an emphasis on women and young people. Within these groups, we work with the poorest and most vulnerable women in Somalia. We promote small-scale enterprise development and employment for poor women and youth. We assist women in particular with income generating activities into market-oriented small businesses, securing their access to finance, business development services and appropriate technologies. We promote smallholder agriculture and enable smallholders to cater for the food and subsistence needs of their families, as well as to produce and deliver surplus to the market.
We plan to focus on farming as a business, agro-processing and agro-based entrepreneurship, and strengthening rural cooperatives and producer groups to strengthening the resilience of communities and their livelihoods against future shocks. Making skills, both for production and for business, is an integral part of our strategy. We therefore do support linking enterprise and employment with education and strive to ensure that vocational training graduates have a smooth transition from school to work and to active citizenship.
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