Bereket Tsegay
Social investments promote social justice and contribute to poverty reduction.[1] This was drawn upon Africa’s experience during the 1960s and 1970s. Though social protection is a fundamental human right, pastoralists have been neglected in securing this right. They usually do not get the necessary facilities that help their survival in the drought-affected areas of the Horn.
The problem of drought in the Horn of Africa is systemic and has led to a vicious cycle of famine. Over the last forty years, the Horn of Africa witnessed a number of development interventions which one after another failed to address the rights issues and ensure social security. Among pastoral communities, inequalities are mainly caused due to the absence of the sharing of power, unfair trade, exploitation by middlemen, unfair government taxation of livestock, and ecological decline. The above problems have been exacerbated as most government policies focus more on urban and semi-urban areas rather than the rural areas predominantly occupied by pastoralists and their unique livelihood. Basic social services (health, education, hygiene and sanitation) are urgently needed to be developed in the remote pastoralist but in a manner which is responsive to the special circumstances, culture and way of life. of the pastoral communities. The pastoralists’ key assets are livestock where there is a need for livestock-based insurance or other alternative mechanisms to be introduced in order to support their self-adaptive strategies during the financial and environmental crisis. The high degree of market volatility and herders assumption about the expected risks of chronic drought pushes them to sell animals at lower prices. Such a situation, force the herders to pay more for the cereals which are not comparable to livestock sales.[2] Such unfavourable terms of trade negatively affect the overall pastoralist household financial position, and they are thus exposed to social insecurity. Currently, they depend almost entirely on their own social, cultural and traditional means for their social protection. Designing long-term development interventions and policies that make social protection a backbone should be devised in order to alleviate poverty and improve their wellbeing.
[1] Bangura, Y. (2011) Jobs and equity key to Africa’s poverty fight: Progress on MDGs requires more than social safety nets, 19 Jan 2011
[2] Little, P. and et al (2001) When deserts flood: risk management and climatic processes among East African pastoralists, in Climate Research, Vol. 19: 149–159, 2001
Source: Based on Paper presented to the UNRSID Conference on “Innovative Development Strategy IV: A Rights-based Approach to Food” Session October 24-25th 2011 Paris, France
