Jamilah* is a 41-year-old single mother of seven children between the ages of 3 and 13. They are originally from Furuglay in the Lower Shebelle region of Somalia, but for the last eight months they have been living in the Nasib camp for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Mogadishu, the capital.
Jamilah’s daily routine in Furuglay had consisted of working on her farm and looking after her livestock, in order to earn money to feed her children. But as Somalia continued to suffer from severe drought, this resulted in food shortages that left many, like Jamilah, in desperate living conditions.
Jamilah said that some days she didn’t have enough food to feed her kids. “For kids, it is difficult to understand that there was nothing to eat,” she recalls. “When my three year-old daughter was a baby, she used to scream for my breast, but my breast did not have enough milk to feed her, so she would cry throughout the day and night.”
Jamilah became mentally and physically stressed trying to care for all her children so they were force to leave Furuglay and ended up in the Nasib camp in Mogadishu.
At the camp, Jamilah receive cash vouchers provided by IRT and our partner Concern Worldwide. Through this program, families receive in funds to enable them to purchase lifesaving food, water, and other items necessary for their survival.
Jamilah now feels hopeful for the future. “My highest desire is being able to feed my children every day. I thank God that I can now do that.”
*Name has been changed to protect the beneficiaries.
.png)
.png)
