Welcome to Day Two in Salaxley, an internally displaced persons camp, just outside of the city of Hargeisa in Somalia. The families living in Salaxley are among some of the most vulnerable people in this part of the country. As drought and flooding have displaced many of the region’s farmers, many families have lost their livelihood and ability to sustain themselves. Today, we’re meeting with two men named Abdi, who live in the camp and used to be farmers. When we spoke with Abdi Ahmed, he told us, “giving a person four goats might seem small, but to me, it’s like being given the gift of life, as I feel like I have been given a second chance to restart my life and now I can provide for my family." Abdi Mohamed had a similar reaction. He mentioned to the team, “When I was informed that I was receiving four goats, it felt so strange. I had endured so much hardship since such a young age—all we had had was our farm growing up, but after the prolonged rainy season and then … [Read more...] about Abdi & Abdi

Hello, hello! Although we’ve left behind the city of Hargeisa and the handful of lovely and hardworking entrepreneurs, we haven’t strayed too far from the city. We’re in Salaxley, an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp, about an hour outside of Hargeisa. Recurrent drought and food insecurity have pushed people out of their homes and into this camp. Many of the people living in Salaxley were farmers who lost their livestock during the drought, or whose crops were swept away during the prolonged rainy season and intense flooding. When trying to figure out what we could do to help the members of the Salaxley community, goats and sheep came up over and over again. So, we’ve selected some individuals who could most benefit from new livestock. That first person is Maryama—Maryama is a 59-year-old single mother with four children who depend on her. Maryama burst into tears after our team members told her she had been selected to receive four goats from Changemakers 365 … [Read more...] about We’ve Goat Your Back

We’ve finished working with a handful of Yemeni refugee entrepreneurs—Ikran, Abdalla, Badriya, Fartun and Muna—but we’re still in Hargeisa for one last day. And today, we met Jamal. Jamal is a Syrian refugee living and working in Hargeisa, close to their international airport. He has a small shop, with food and other supplies, much of which is comforting and familiar to other Syrians living in the city. The shop is equally appealing to Somali clientele, for its large variety of items. Jamal arrived in Hargeisa about five years ago and has been trying to make things work in the city that’s become his new home. He opened his shop just a few months ago, and it’s been doing well, but he’s also been feeling the steep cost of rent for a shop on a main thoroughfare. It’s especially pricy to restock the items he sells that aren’t produced domestically. So, we helped Jamal make sure he could keep his shop open for a few more months by helping him pay the rent and restock a few … [Read more...] about Welcome to the Neighborhood

Hello, hello, and welcome back to another day in Hargeisa. We’re working with Muna, a talented Yemeni refugee entrepreneur. Muna specializes in making dresses for special occasions and other big events. Because she was trained in Yemen, she uses fabrics that are rather hard to come across in Somalia. Still, her designs are widely popular when it comes to dressing up for weddings, graduations, and the like. This offers Muna a unique opportunity, as she’s found there’s a high demand for the skills she has, something that many others don’t. We were able to pick out a sewing machine with Muna yesterday, but it’s difficult to sew a new dress when you don’t have the fabric you need! So, today, we worked with Muna to help her order some specialty fabric from Yemen. Despite the ongoing war in Yemen, ships frequently pass across the Gulf of Aden, hauling goods between Yemen and Somalia. We made sure to get some of that specialized fabric on the next ship to get Muna working on … [Read more...] about Marvelous Materials

We’ve got just a couple of days left in Hargeisa, and we’re doing our best to make the most of them. For the next few days, we’ll be with Muna, a talented seamstress. Muna's pretty new to the neighborhood. She arrived in Hargeisa about a year and a half ago with her two young children and husband. Recently, she gave birth to another daughter, too. As as the family grows, Muna and her husband are finding out how to best provide for her their family. They have registered with the UN refugee agency as refugees, but they haven’t been able to receive support from another NGO that provides start-up funds because they can’t afford the transportation to visit that NGO. Without startup funds to purchase a sewing machine of her own, Muna has been borrowing her neighbor’s machine to work on projects to sell. Muna has the skills to run her own tailoring business, but she lacks the resources. So today, she picked out her own sewing machine that she would be able to use to keep her … [Read more...] about Sew Much to Do

It’s a third and final day with Fartun, a Yemeni shop owner with the widest smile and warmest heart on the block. Fartun has been displaced from her home a number of times now—first, when she was forced to return to Yemen after living in Mogadishu, and then again when war broke out in Yemen. She’s finally feeling like she can breathe freely and relax in her new home of Hargeisa. Fartun’s feeling confident that this will be her forever home, especially now that she’s opened up her own beauty shop. But running a shop comes with steep costs—especially rent. Fartun’s shop is on a major street in her neighborhood. This prime location is one of the main reasons she’s able to sell as much as she is, but also one of the reasons that rent is so high. To lend her a hand and make sure that she can keep her op open for longer, we’re helping cover rent for the next few months. This way, Fartun will be able to try to sell her new items and try out innovative business strategies, all … [Read more...] about Keeping the Shop Open

Today we’re meeting with another Yemeni entrepreneur, Fartun! We’ll be spending the next few days with her and learning more about her business. Fartun has an amazing, winding story. Growing up in Yemen, she eventually moved to Mogadishu for work, but fled to Aden, Yemen when the Somali Civil War broke out in the 1990s. When war later broke out in Yemen, she found herself starting a new life—yet again—in Hargeisa. Here in Hargeisa, she’s had a chance to put down some roots. Fartun told us, “This is the best time of my life. I finally have a sense of being, and I’m the happiest I’ve ever been now that I’m away from the gunfire and war. I have finally been able to settle, open my shop, and I’m so proud of it.” Fartun came to Hargeisa in 2015 and opened her shop a couple of years later. She sells perfume, beauty products, and a select few clothes. But Fartun has always wished to sell more in her shop, so today, we took her out to get some of those items. She picked out … [Read more...] about A Shop Refresh

It’s our third and final day with Bidraya, a Yemeni entrepreneur living in Hargeisa, Somalia. Although we’re sad to part ways with her, we’re excited about this last project together. Bidraya is a talented cook and baker and sells sweets to various shops around town, plus directly to schoolchildren during their breaks. As she’s gotten older, Bidraya has been feeling the physical effects of carrying her sweets all over from shops and schools. With time, she’s wished more and more to find a shop of her own. For a while now, Bidraya’s been eyeing an empty storefront next to her apartment and previously spoke with the owner about the cost of the place. But when we came back to speak with him about renting, he tripled the price, making the space far out of budget. But that wasn’t the only storefront in town! Not too far from her apartment, there was a perfect, affordable space where Bidraya could envision building a business. We were able to secure a deposit and the first five … [Read more...] about What’s in Store?

It’s our second day with Bidraya—a Yemeni sweets maker in Hargeisa—and we’re helping make her business aspirations come to life. Bidraya is already running a small sweets production out of her apartment, but the demand for her goods is higher than what she’s able to supply with her limited supplies and space. People simply can't get enough of those sweets! Yesterday, we made sure she had the right kind of stove to expand her business. And today, we’re making sure she’s got all the right tools and supplies by taking Bidraya to the market. At the market, Bidraya was able to find all the things she needed to stay busy and productive in the coming months. We picked up staples like flour, oil, and sugar, which are always needed in the kitchen! Then, we stocked up on supplies like larger pots and pans, cutting boards, new knives, and heftier bowls. Each new piece is made to last and will keep her going for some time. It’s a small effort for our team, but it’ll make a huge … [Read more...] about Taking Stock

Welcome back to another day in Somalia! We’ll spend these next three days with a charming Yemeni woman, Bidraya. Bidraya is one of those neighborhood aunties who looks after everyone around her. Originally from Hudaydah, Yemen, she fled the civil war for Somalia four years ago. She’s alone in Somalia, with family members scattered across Djibouti and Yemen. But she shares an apartment with another Yemeni family and has a small community around her. Bidraya is a talented cook and makes her own sweets, like the Yemenite Fried Dough called Zalabia. The dough rises in the hallway of her apartment building, and she then fries it in the small kitchen corner of their one-bedroom apartment. Despite all her talents and ambition, Bidraya doesn’t have all the equipment she needs. One such item is a stove and oven—she has a single burner that sits on her floor for a pot to rest on, but it limits what she can produce. We wanted to help Bidraya do what she already does best, so we took … [Read more...] about Now You’re Cooking with Gas