Poverty Analysis: The Case of Rural Somalia

Abstract

of the identification and characterization of the poor and the analysis of the causes of their poverty, of the constraints they face, and of the design of poverty-oriented development strategies and programs. We have adopted this definition in the present case study. Somalia differs from other developing countries in the importance of livestock. More than half the population are livestock producers, livestock is by far the most important export item, and the contribution of livestock production to GDP is estimated to be between one-fourth and one-third. Though there are few countries where livestock is as important as in Somalia, there are nevertheless similarities in this respect to the countries in the Sudano-Sahelian belt. Some of the results of this study should therefore be applicable to these countries as well. The foremost issue in the analysis of rural poverty in countries like Somalia is the position of livestock producers in relation to farmers, and this is a recurrent theme throughout this paper. The organization of this paper follows the stages of the process of poverty analysis enumerated above. Section II explores the implications of different methods of poverty identification, while Section III discusses the characteristics of the two groups. Subsequent stages in the analysis of poverty, formulation and testing of causes and solutions, and design of appropriate development programs are discussed in the final section. We start by reviewing the results of earlier studies, both of poverty in general and of Somalia in particular.