Awdal

Awdal region is three distinct topographical zones: the coastal, mountainous and plateau (Ogo) zones. Starting from the north along the sea is the coastal zone. The coastal zone comprises sandy plains that stretches from Sahil region in the east to Djibouti in north- west and extends up to 70-90 kilometers from the sea and is about 600 meters above the sea level. Next to the coastal zone is the mountainous zone. Geologically, much of the Awdal region is located in the Arabian Plate.[10]

The mountainous zone consist a string of mountains, known as Golis range, extends from east to west all across the region and is about 700 –1000 meters above the sea level. The zone is characterized by topographical features such as deep gorges, valleys, and dry water courses, with and without springs, that all end up into coastal zone. During rainy season, the water courses carrying rain water run-offs from mountains go into the sea. The run-offs washed down good soil from mountain tops and, in the process, cause environmental degradation and deterioration of roads passing across the mountains into coastal towns; they also leave behind deep sandy soils in coastal plains that make road transportation a big challenge. The last and the third topographical feature of the region, next to the Mountainous Zone in the south, is the Ogo Plateau zone. It about 1100–1300 meters above the sea level. Most of the major towns and villages including the regional capital, Borama occur in this zone and has high population density in the region.[11]

• 1. Routine Activities 95 MCHs Including Mobile team
• 2. None Routine Activities 4 MCHs
• 3. Two Rounds of CHDs
• 4. Two Rounds of NIDs
• 5. Immunization Out-Reach Activities Done by SRCS for 8 months in Borama Districts including Dilla, 3 fixed team and 5 mobile teams.
• 6. Immunization Out Reach Activities Done by WVI for 3 months in Baki and Lughaya District for 4 teams
• 7. No Out Reach Activities done in Zeila District

• 1. IRS is done in 5 villages.
• 2. ITNs distribution to two villages.
• 3. RDTs and Malaria Kits distributed all MCHs and Health Posts.[18]

Agriculture[24] is the second largest economic activity in Awdal Region besides livestock rearing. According to regional agriculture authority, 35% of the population in region depends on agriculture. Two main types of agriculture activities are practiced in the region: Rain-fed and irrigated farming. The lands under cultivation in the region are estimated at 40,000 hectares of rain-fed farming and 4,000 hectares are irrigation farming respectively. Rain-fed activities are practiced on the southern part of the region along the Ethiopian border, locally known as Ogo Zone (plateau), during the rainy season between the months of April and September. Irrigated-farming is practiced in central mountainous zone of the region between the coastal plains in the north and Ogo Zone in the south. Most of the irrigated-farms occur along the banks dry rivers beds. Some of river beds have running streams and farmers and irrigate the farms on gravitation while dug shallow-wells in dry river beds and diesel driven water pumps.

According to regional agriculture authority, 8,000 families are involved in rain-fed farming activities in the region. Rain-farmers are agro-pastoralists. They grow cereal crops such as sorghum, maize, and other cereals such as finger-millet, and at the same time keep livestock such cattle, sheep and goats and camels in small numbers. Both the farm and animal productions are mainly used for family subsistence and any extra production is taken to urban centers for sale to generate some cash to buy other essential goods and services. Irrigated-farms, on the other hand, support 2000 families in the region. Like rain-fed farming irrigated farming practices are for subsistence as well. Farmers grow fruits and vegetables for cash and grow tomatoes, lettuce, guava, oranges, papaya, lime, watermelons, melons (Shamam) pepper, carrot, onions etc. They take them to local urban centers and generate cash to buy food stuffs and other essential goods and services. The Supply irrigated farms is very high and flood local markets during rainy seasons. The supply of the fruits and vegetables are very limited and very expensive during the dry season. Refrigeration would have been possible if cheap energy were available. Agriculture sector plays a major role in the economy of the region. It provides employment opportunities to many people in rural and urban areas; supports the livelihoods of more than 35% of the regional population; and contribute the local food production of the country. In spite of these roles, 22.73% of total cultivable land is utilized and the current production level of the land already under cultivation is low. This can be attributed to: inappropriate farming practices, depletion of soil fertility, inadequate agriculture extension services; distribution of free grains from international organizations; rural-urban migration of manpower; poor or absence of feeder roads; and lack of financing sources.[25]

Livestock is a mainstay of Somaliland economy. More than 60% of the population depends directly or indirectly on livestock products and by-products for livelihood.[26] It provides employment opportunities; generates a bulk of central and local government revenues; a source of hard currency needed for doing business with outside world such as importing goods and services; and is the main sources of milk and meat for both urban and rural population of the country. Like other regions of Somaliland, livestock rearing is largely pastoral. Pastoralists are nomadic and move with their livestock on a seasonal basis looking pasture and water. They mostly keep large stocks of sheep and goats, camels and some cattle. They are mostly found in all the three topographical zones of the region: Ogo (Plateau), Mountainous, and Coastal. In mountainous zone pastoralists keep large stocks of goats and sheep and lesser stocks of camels, and cattle due to the harsh terrain of the zone which is mainly suitable for goats. Pastoralists in the coastal zone keep large stocks of camels, sheep and goats. The coastal zone is 500 to 600 meters above the sea level and the terrain is flat and has good pastures for all types of livestock when its receives adequate rains which are infrequent and erratic. Agro-pastoralists are sedentary communities that mix both farming and livestock rearing practices. Most of regional agro-pastoralists are found in the plateau (Ogo) zone which is 1200–1300 meters above the sea level. Agro-pastoralists cultivate sorghum and maize crops and keep lesser stocks of cattle and sheep and goats than the nomadic pastoralists as a supplement to farm crops. Remains of the grown crops are used for fodder for farm animals. The head office of sector in the regions is in Borama and consists of two technical departments and an administration and finance department. The technical departments are: Animal Health and Animal Production. The Animal Health department is responsible for livestock diseases, vector control and laboratory services. Animal Production department is responsible for livestock production related services (these need total restructuring). The ministry has also small offices in other districts in the region. Most veterinary services are carried out by mobile teams comprising public and private professionals mostly sponsored by international agencies.

Notwithstanding the economic importance of livestock in the region, the sector is facing major challenges. First, many of the traditional livestock grazing lands are turned into regular farmlands. And, consequently, the regular seasonal movements of pastoralists for alternate pasture lands are severely curtailed. This adversely affected livestock population and production quality. Without a regional rural land management policy and demarcation between grazing and farmlands, the economic roles of the livestock is in jeopardy.

• Second, available skilled livestock health professionals are very limited. The number of skilled staff in the region is 17. This number is too small to meet regional demand. During livestock mass treatments and vaccinations, additional skilled staff such Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs) are hired from outside.
• Third, livestock health facilities in the region are also very limited. The only one existing in the region is in Borama. The sector office in Borama is both an administration offices, and regional drug store. Two other small vet facilities exist in Dilla and Quljeed districts and used as offices and drug stores.
• Fourth, the institutional capacity of the ministry of livestock in the region is weak. There are no administration offices, livestock health facilities, and adequate skilled professional in Baki, Lughaya and Zeila districts where livestock population in the region is mostly available.
• Finally, the regional ministry is severely constrained by the absence of regular budget allocations. Lack of adequate budget allocations hinders operational activities of the sector.

Awdal is the third region that has the longest coastline in Somaliland.[27] The coast is about 300 km long from Sahil Region in the east and Republic of Djibouti in the west. The two districts of Lughaya and Zeila are coastal towns in the region and are respectively the capital cities of the two districts. With the exception of a few fishers in the coastal towns, most of the people in Lughaya and Zeila districts are pastoralists that rear camels, sheep and goats in the coastal plains. Pastoralists depend on their animals for living and despise fishing as the livelihood of impoverished people that has no livestock of their own. Despite the vast marine resources available, as indicated in Somaliland National Development Plan, fishing plays a very limited role in the economy of coastal towns. This attributed to many factories.

• First the demand for fish consumption is very low in the coastal

towns due to limited population densities, and as result of this, a very small number of artisan fishermen are engaged in subsistence type of fishing and use small boats just to feed their families and meet the available market.

• Second, the coastal towns have no easy access to major urban centers where demand for fish consumption is high. The fishing communities in coastal towns of Zeila and Lughaya are separated from major towns in the region by sandy coastal plains which stretch more than 60 70 km from the sea and more than 120 km from east to west. Trucks frequently break in sandy roads and cause a lot of repairs and maintenance to owners. Behind sandy coastal plains in the south, transportation in the mountainous zone, with deep gorges, valleys and dry river beds cutting deep in the zone, is very difficult and risky. The mountainous zone stretches east to west and in not less than 70 km from coastal plains. These topographical features of both zones severely discourage truck owners and, as a result, cause very high transportation charges and long travel duration. Together, the sandy coastal plains and mountainous features make market accessibility almost impossible of transporting fish from coastal towns to major urban centers since most of Somaliland's major urban centers are in Ogo Zone which occurs south of both of coastal and mountainous zones.
• Third, large scale of fishing is hampered by absence of constant ice-making and fish storage facilities; lack of organization and skills in repairing and maintenance services of fishing boats and fishing gear; high fuel costs; and above all lack of freezer trucks to transport fish to major urban centers where demand for fish is very high. Demand for fish has become higher since the livestock export ban was lifted in 2009. The price of meat has almost quadrupled since 2009.
• Fourth, both Zeila and Lughaya occur on straight coastline without natural shelter, absence of fishing ports (jetty) and landing sites. Consequently, fishing boats are exposed to open sea with all its turbulent winds and waves.
• Finally, the sector is constrained by the absence of institutional capacity including ice-making and fish storage facilities in coastal towns. Besides, availability of fishing gear, spare parts and lack of fishing gear repairs and maintenance skills are major bottlenecks of the fishing industry in the region.

Awdal Environment Protection Region,[31] has three distinct topographical zones. Starting from the north along the sea is coastal zone which stretches from Sahil region in the east to Republic of Djibouti in North West. The coastal zone comprises sandy coastal plains that stretch up 70 km south into mountainous zone, otherwise known Golis range, which is about 500–1000 meters above the sea level.

The coastal zone is brutally hot, sometimes more than 45-degree Celsius, during the summer, from May to September, and receives lesser rain than other zones in the region. This zone is locally known "Guban" which means "burned" in English and its dwellers are called "Qorax-joog" (Sun dwellers). The coastal zone usually gets its rain during the winter season when other zones are in dry season. Known locally as Hais", the rainy season is usually from December to January. Because of its low rainfall, the vegetation in coastal plains consists of different types of grasses and a few hardy scattered acacia trees. All dry rivers from mountainous zone end up in coastal plains and during the rainy season runs -offs from mountainous zone end up in the low coastal plains and bring alluvial soil. A colonial governor from Zeila travelled along the coastal zone in 1887and described the rich vegetations and heavy forests along the banks of dry rivers in the coastal plains, some of which with running streams. He also wrote about the rich vegetation and the presence of wild animals such as elephants, antelopes, lions, leopards, black panthers, and different types of birds.

Next coastal zone in the south is the Mountainous Zone otherwise known Golis. The mountainous zone is 600 to 1000 meters above the sea level and gets Gu‟ rains during the months of April to September. Some areas of this zone adjacent to coastal areas also get some of winter (Hais) rains received by the coastal zone. Because of this, the zone gets more rains than the coastal zone, and has, as a result, more vegetation. The zone is also characterized by the existence of many dry rivers with running water streams throughout the year. There had been thick forests in the valleys and along banks of the river beds that had been a conducive environment for various wild animals such as lions, kudu, Oryx, leopards, cheetah, mountain dik-dik (Ala-kud), Gazelles and even elephants. It is said that the last elephant in Somaliland has died in the 1940s in Dibirawein Valley, now in Baki District, and some of its bones are still sitting there. However, since the 1970s, almost all valleys and banks of the dry rivers with running streams were turned into irrigated farms and, in the process, the thick forests were cleared, burned for charcoal and/or used for construction purposes and, consequently, the wild animals hunted, killed or migrated as their habitats completely were devastated by human intrusion. People in this zone were pastoralists and reared goats and sheep and a few camels. With the introduction of farming, the livestock population has also declined as the wild animals.

The third topographical zone in the region is the Ogo Zone which runs parallel next to Mountainous Zone in the south. It is an upland terrain (plateau) which is about 1100 to 1300 meters above the sea level and gets more rain during the Gu‟ Season. Most of the people in this zone are sedentary agro-pastoralists that mix cultivation of cereals crops in rain-fed farms with livestock keeping in small cattle numbers such as cattle, sheep, and goats. The Ogo Zone is densely populated and suffered the worst environmental degradation.

Understanding the fragility of the Somaliland environment, the colonial administrations introduced parks, reserved grazing lands, and established forestry camps in the region. There had been three such sites in Borama, Jir-jir, Libaaxley, and Baki which were reserved for wildlife and livestock grazing. The reserved lands were closed off during the rainy seasons and solely opened for livestock grazing during the dry season when pastures become scarce. The reserves were not only reserved for livestock pastures but for wild animals as well. Forester camps were also established for the protection wild animals and for maintenance of wildlife habitats.

For the last 40 years, the environment has been vast deteriorating and sustaining some irreversible damages. Many factors have contributed to such environmental degradation. As population density has increased and economic conditions become harsh, people turned to natural resources such as forests for a living. Moreover, the socialist regime of Siyad Barre has introduced cooperative farming practices, and, as a result, many common grazing lands and valleys and that were the breeding environment of wildlife, were given to specific people in the name of farming cooperatives. Furthermore, the situation of the environment deteriorated further during the civil wars when law and order collapsed following the fall of the socialist regime. Afterwards, an unprecedented land grabbing started in rural areas. Forests were cleared for farms, burned for charcoal, cut down for construction materials and for living as well.

As reported by the Baki District Commissioner, charcoal business is causing unprecedented environmental destruction in Baki District. Every day about 15 trucks carrying hundreds of tones of charcoal head off for Borama, Gebilay, Hargeisa, and Zeila towns. More than 700 men are involved in charcoal burning activities and have established camps in all well-wooded areas of the district. As indicated in NDP of Somaliland government, there is an urgent need for formulation of sound national environment protection policy and establishment of an effective environmental management mechanism in order to achieve a sustainable national and subnational development.

Roads are very crucial for the movement of people and goods.[32] Because of the topographical features of the region, road transport is an impediment to development of the region. The topographical features of the region make road transport very discouraging: sandy coastal plains and range of mountains. Coastal plains are very sandy and a lot of dry rivers from mountains zone pass through coastal plains and have been depositing sands for centuries. The distance of coastal plains from east to west is estimated at 200 km and the distance between the mountainous zone and coastal zone is estimated at 70 km. It takes about 3 to 4 hours for a truck to travel from Lughaya to Zeila which is about 150 km apart due to sandy plains and sandy dry river beds. During rainy seasons transport movement stops for days. Besides, the distance between Zeila and Borama is about 250 km and it takes about 8 hours for a truck to travel between the two towns due to the poor condition of the road.

The coastal and mountainous zones are indeed economically very potential but are the least developed so far. Absence of serviceable inter-regional roads networks and feeders roads are the main challenges to the development of fisheries, agriculture, and mining sectors. According to the Chinese proverb, poverty can be easily reduced through building roads: if you want fight poverty build a road. When roads are opened to impoverished isolated communities life could dramatically improve.

The regional Ministry of Public Works,[33] Housing and Transport has had the mandate of providing guidance and oversight over public works, transport, and housing in all districts of the region. However, the sector is scarcely operational.

Since the collapse of the late Siyad Barre regime in 1990, most of the public buildings in all districts are occupied by IDPs and/or refugee returnees. Still others are in utter disrepair. There had been a total of 64 of public offices and houses in the region (40 in Borama, 12 in Baki and 12 in Lughaya). Even the head office of the sector in Borama is occupied by IDPs. The vehicle garages and workshops are also occupied. The head office of the sector in the region has neither the capacity nor the resources required for the restoration of sector operations. The regional head office of the sector theoretically comprises six functional departments:

• 1. Transport
• 2. Construction
• 3. Architecture
• 4. Planning
• 5. Government Houses
• 6. Administration & Finance

Formally each of the six departments is supposed to have five technical staff members. There are only 10 staff people in the region including a security guard at the present, and they share two available offices. Other districts do not have administration offices, nor other essential sector infrastructure.

Energy is very crucial for the development of a nation. However, the achievements of Somaliland‟s development goals depend upon the availability of cheap energy sources. Energy is indispensable for industrial, household, transportation uses. In Somaliland, the main sources of energy are fossil fuels. They include diesel, petrol, kerosene, charcoal, and fire wood. They are utilized for generation of electricity, transport and for household use. With the exception of charcoal and firewood, all the others are imported from outside and huge amounts of hard currency is expended on their importation. Like other regions, charcoal and fire woods are the main fuel sources utilized for household, businesses and other institutions that are involved in food services in the region. Charcoal consumption is the highest in the urban centers while firewood is mainly used in rural areas. Charcoal and firewood fuels have had utter deforestation in the region. Borama town used to have an electricity power station known as Borama Power Station. It was established just before the Socialist Regime came into power in 1969. It was used for lighting public houses and the main streets of the town. The station was expanded in the 1980s by Henley on Thames (UK) a sister city of Borama. Henley on Thames provided two electricity generators of 1500 KVAs each and their spare parts and accessories awaiting installation. After the collapse of the Socialist Regime in 1990, private individuals joined together and took over the power station and had been providing electricity for fee up to 2003. Eventually, the Borama Power Station collapsed for mismanagement and distribution infrastructures such as overhead wires and poles are now being used by private electricity companies created right after the collapse of the power station. Now, the Borama Power Station building and compound are idle. Currently, more than three private companies provide electricity in Borama. The many attempts of forming public-private partnership (PPP) with private companies by Borama Municipality, representing Borama Power Station, ended in vain. The private electricity companies charges $1.20/watt. And, as result of this, electricity is only used for lighting households and for minor commercial operations purposes.

Borama Airport,[34] which is 2 km long and 200 meters wide, was constructed in 1988 by former collapsed socialist government. The purpose the airport was built was to enable the region to have an access to air transport for the movement of goods and people and link the region to the outside world. Current operations of the airport are very limited. Most of passenger, cargo planes and UN aircraft use Hargeisa and Berbera airports due to appropriate airport facilities and services. Moreover, the airport runway is unpaved and rough and its land demarcation is not yet fixed by the local government. Thus, the airport area is being frequently infringed by land grabbers. The airport has no security fence and, consequently, exposed to roaming livestock. Besides, due to absence of the fence, truck drivers use the runway as road and pose unnecessary risks to aircraft. Additionally, the airport is missing some very essential services and facilities such weather forecasting services, fire trucks, air communication and water supply system. Lack of institutional capacities such shortage of trained staff, budgetary restrictions and lack of transport are some of the constraints hampering Borama Airport operations. If the above challenges are duly addressed, airport operation would probably resume operations.

The mandate of the Ministry of Justice is ensuring that the fundamental rights and freedoms of Somalilanders, and, as result, have established an effective legal mechanism that protects the citizens against oppression and abuses. Somaliland government carried out all necessary steps of ensuring that an effective and transparent justice system is in place and the rule of law is duly applied with all the necessary court proceedings and investigation processes of civil and criminal cases. Somaliland judiciary courts comprise:

• 1. District courts
• 2. Regional courts
• 3. Appeal courts
• 4. Supreme court

Borama is the regional capital of the region and has the largest population in the region. The exact figure of the total inhabitants that live Borama town is uncertain, however, it is estimated that total population of not less than 450,000 to 750,000 live inside Borama. Borama population has greatly increased since the collapse of the former regime of Siad Barre due to refugees from Somalia in 1991 and returnees from refugee camps in Ethiopia and Djibouti. Borama is Grade "A" district and is one of the six districts under the provision of Joint Program for Local Governance (JPLG) program. Five UN agencies (UNDP, UN-HABITAT, UNICEF, NCDF, and ILO) work close with the local government to carry out their responsibilities. Each of the five UN agencies involves in a distinct role different from those of the other four. Some of the areas in the JPLG program include financial management, planning and management of projects, local council's parliamentary procedures and leadership. Despite the important roles that Somaliland constitution has assigned to local governments to plays in socio-economic development of its constituency, Borama Local Government is not without challenges.

The regional governor office is in Borama, the regional capital. It was built during colonial administration and had been the office of the then Borama District Commissioner. The building is very old and made of mud bricks and is one of the few public offices not occupied by squatters. It is a historic place and that could be a reason squatters got ashamed of its occupation or it might have been prevented from occupation by patriotic individuals. Whatever the reason might have been, it is a historic icon for the region.