Desperation as drought in Garissa County hits locals and livestock hard

Dekow Adan, 34, and his ageing mother Halima Hussein have walked for about 45 kilometres from their home in Eri Location to the Hulugho water pan, the only and nearest water source.

With them are two donkey carts that have each carrying 10 twenty-litre jerrycans which they use to draw water from the Hulugho dam and take it back home.

According to Mr Adan, this has been the trend for the last one month as water sources near their village have dried up and they now fear for the loss of human life due to the escalating drought.

Hundreds of their livestock have already died owing to current situation.

“Many of our animals have died and the remaining ones are deep in Boni Forest where there is no water and they only depend on tabs which is expensive to pastoralists,” he told the Nation.

“We are really pushed to the wall. Every day we have to use this donkey cart to draw water. Sometimes like today my mother accompanies me so that we have two donkey carts,” he added.

When the Nation visited Hulugho dam which is about 18 kilometres from the Kenya-Somalia border, hundreds of people with donkey carts and others with water tanks were drawing water from the contaminated pan which, according to locals, is fast drying up.

Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers manning border towns also depend on the dam for water.

WALK FOR OVER 50KM

Locals who spoke to the Nation told of their sufferings as most of them are forced to trek more than 50km to water sources. Some have built make-shift huts around water pan.

According to Agnes Ndetei, the Chairperson of National Drought Management Authority (NDMA), 60 per cent of Garissa County residents have been affected by the drought with Ijara, Hulugho and Fafi being worst hit.

Wild animals have also been affected by the drought with a number of buffaloes having died in the last two weeks.

The Nation counted about 20 buffalo carcasses around water points in Sangailu’s Wakab Harey dam, Ruqa, Gedi Lun, Ijara and Korisa.

Speaking at Hulugho while on drought assessment tour of his constituency, Ijara MP Ahmed Ibrahim Abass said a large population now depends on water bowers as most water pans have dried up.

He said hundreds of residents are at risk of starvation as they have nothing left after their remaining livestock went to Boni Forest for pasture.

FAST DRYING

The MP said the remaining water sources are fasting drying up because of mounting pressure from residents and their livestock.

“The situation is very critical as all water pans have dried up and the remaining ones are fast going. Immediate intervention is quickly needed. The government should supply water, food and also provide shelter as many people now live [near] water sources,” he said.

He accused the both national and county governments of being negligent of the plight of hundreds of locals.

Mr Abass said the current drought in his constituency has not been experienced for decades, adding that people are on the verge of starvation if the government does not respond quickly.

“We appeal to President Uhuru Kenyatta and the Jubilee government to come to the aid of the people because in the next few days human life might be lost which [would be a} shame,” said Mr Abass.

Mr Abass said human-wildlife conflicts have been on the rise since the start of the dry spell.

More than ten people have either been killed or injured while taking their livestock to the fast-drying water sources.

The MP appealed to KDF soldiers and other security personnel who are in Boni Forest in an operation to flash out Al-Shabaab militants not to harass hundreds of pastoralists who are in the forest looking for pasture for their animals.