Reference :
V-P-SO-E-01067
Date :
19/04/2026
Caption :
Las Anod, Sool region. Hassan Hussein, 43, struggles to feed his goats after losing half of his herd due to the drought.
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Description :
Hassan Hussein notes that the current lack of vegetation is the worst he has ever seen in his lifetime, surpassing even the 2017 drought. He is now forced to buy commercial feed to keep his remaining goats alive, a cost he cannot afford. Having lost half of his herd over the past year, he is now looking for odd jobs in town, marking a forced transition away from his dependence on the land.
“The goats you see over there, they can no longer find anything from the land. We are forced to feed them by hand…The land no longer sustains them. People and their animals are bound together. When the animals suffer, we suffer too.”
“The situation is extremely difficult. Very, very difficult for people. This has been going on since last year. We kept waiting for the rains, but they never came. Instead, the drought only worsened. We hoped for pasture, but there was none. The rains we were expecting never arrived. The dry season simply continued.”
“But in my lifetime, I have not seen [a drought] more difficult than this. In 2017, at least the animals could still find something to graze. They could scavenge from the land and survive. Today, the land is barren. There is nothing left.”
Original material :
digital
Resolution :
4000x6000
Orientation :
portrait
Colour/B&W :
colour
