The report is a synthesis of SWALIM water assessments and reports, supplemented by detailed statistical analysis of the temporal and spatial variability of the available surface and groundwater resources, and their existing and potential uses. The assessment is based on the integration of hydrometeorological and physiographic data collected and analysed by SWALIM and partner agencies. The assessment describes the existing major water resources in the country, identifies special water resources needs and opportunities, documents ongoing and planned water resources development activities; it suggests practicable approaches to short and long-term water resources development at mezzo-and macro scale. The report is intended to support integrated water resources management in Somalia, based on coordinated development and management of water and land related resources.

Somalia covers an area of 637,657 km2 with the population in 2003 estimated at 7.5 million inhabitants. Somalia economy is predominantly agricultural (crops and livestock, the latter being a major mainstay). The economy depends highly on water availability, which in turn is reliant on rainfall. Rainfall in Somalia is not only low, below 100 mm per year in some areas, but has a high temporal and spatial variability (annexes 1 to 5). The annual average rainfall ranges from 215 mm in the North-eastern regions to approximate 550 mm in the South-Central regions (SWALIM, 2007). The water balance for the country depicts potential evapotranspiration greater than rainfall in the entire country. In addition, other hydro-physical conditions that negatively impact on the availability of freshwater include land degradation and siltation of water bodies. The situation has been compounded by 16 years of civil strife, especially in the southern regions. A number of local and international organizations have initiated civil reconstruction, environmental conservation and livelihood-support programmes. Experts estimate that Somalia is among the 13 African countries that will face water scarcity by 2025. A country is said to be water scarce when its annual per capita water availability falls below 1000 m3. Already, Somalia has less than 500 m3/per capita/year (UNECA, 2000). This is attributed to erratic spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall with average annual amounts falling between 100 and 800 mm, high evaporation, and human activities that exacerbate land degradation.

Somalia generally has an arid to semi-arid climate. Rainfall is the defining characteristic of the climate and has a great spatial and temporal variability. The climate of Somalia is determined by the north and south movement of the inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). In most areas of Somalia this results in two rainfall seasons - the Gu as the zone passes northwards and the Deyr as it moves south. In both cases, rain is produced from the moist air derived from the Indian Ocean, in the southerly air stream. The north-easterly winds, emanating from Asia and Arabia, produce little significant rain. It is generally considered that rainfall is the most important meteorological element affecting life in Somalia. In particular, variation from season to season, and variations within the season are what determine the successes of agricultural activities.

Although irrigated agriculture was the life-line of the Somali economy before the start of civil strife in 1990, much of the information on the pre-war irrigation systems is lost and little is known about their present status. This report documents the findings of an assessment carried out by SWALIM to determine the status of medium to large irrigation schemes in Southern Somalia and their irrigation infrastructure. Comprehensive literature review, key contact interviews and extensive remotely sensed data analyses were carried out to arrive at the assessment results. Baseline information on the water barrages, canal systems and the irrigation schemes was generated and a GIS irrigation infrastructure database was constructed. About 5,000 km of canals were identifi ed and compared with satellite images. The boundaries and the status of 34 medium to large irrigation schemes were identifi ed. The data is well structured and accessible through desktop GIS software or through the web based Geonetwork software. The results obtained, together with the recommendations, are expected to form the basis for the infrastructure rehabilitation efforts by the donor community.

Soomaaliya guud ahaan waxay leeday cimilo u dhexeysa oomane iyo mid bar-oomane ah. Roob-da’u waa sifo qeexeysa cimilada oo waxay leedahay kala duwanaasho weyn oo masaaxadeed iyo mid waqtiyeed. Cimilada Soomaaliya waxa ay ka abuuranta kulanka dabaylaha ka soo dhaca waqooyiga iyo koonfurta aagga dhulsooraha (inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)). Meelo badan oo gudaha Soomaaliya ah waxay tani ka dhalisaa laba xilli roobaad – Guga marka aaggu gobolku xagga waqooyi iyo deyrta marka uu u wareego koonfur. Labada xaaladoodba, roobku wuxuu ka dhashaa dabaysha qoyan ee ka timaadda Badweynta Hindiya, marka dabayshu u dhacayso xagga koonfureed. Dabaylaha waqooyi-bari, ka soo dhacaya Aasiya iyo Caaraabiya, waxay dhaliyaaan roob aan badnayn. Waxaa badanaa la aaminsan yahay in roob di’iddu tahay waxa ugu muhiimsan cimilada oo saamaynaya nolosha gudaha Soomaaliya. Si gaar ah, isbedel xilli ka xilli, iyo isbedello isla xilliga gudihiisa waxay yihiin waxa go’aamiya guulaha hawlaha beeraha.

Water resources in Somalia are limited both in quantity and quality, with frequent droughts and floods further worsening the water security situation in the country. Before the onset of civil war in early 1991, the main institution in charge of water resources management in Somalia was the Ministry of Water and Mineral Resources (MWMR) through the National Water Centre (NWC). Exploitation of domestic water supplies was the responsibility of the Water Development Agency (WDA), while the ministry of Agriculture planned and operated water for agricultural activities in the Shabelle River. For the Juba River, development was the responsibility of the Ministry of National Planning and Juba Valley Development. Institutional arrangements of water resources management showed fragmentation, without a clear divide between the functions of national and local agencies. With the outbreak of civil war in 1991, much of the water infrastructure in Somalia was destroyed and social services such as health,education, water and sanitation were seriously affected.Being located in an extremely water-scarce area, the environmental, social and economic development of Somalia is to a large extent dependent on improved water security through effective management of water resources.

Khayraadka biyaha gudaha Soomaaliya waa ay kooban yihiin tiro iyo tayo labadaba, taas oo ay weheliso abaar soo noqnoqda iyo daadad sii xumeeya xaaladda ammaanka biyaha ee gudaha dalka. Ka hor bilowgii dagaalka sokeeye ee horraantii1991, hay'adda ugu muhiimsan ee mas'uul ka ah maaraynta khayraadka biyaha gudaha Soomaaliya waxay ahayd Wasaaradda Khayraadka Biyaha iyo Macdanta iyada oo loo marayo Xarunta Biyaha Qaran. Manaafacaadsiga biyo siinta maxalliga waxaa mas'uuliyad ka saarnayd Hay'adda Horumarinta Biyaha (WDA), halka Wasaaradda Beeraha ay qorshayn jirtey oo ka shaqayn jirtey hawlaha biyaha waraabka beeraha ee wabiga Shabeelle. Marka ay noqoto Webiga Jubba, horumarinta waxaa ka mas'uul ahaa Wasaaradda Qorshaynta Qaranka iyo Horumarinta Dooxada Juba. Qabanqaabooyinka hay'adeed ee maareynta khayraadka biyaha waxay muujiyeen kala qoqobnaan, oo aan lahay xad cad oo u dhexeeya hawlaha hay'adaha qaraniyo kuwa maxalliga ah. Markii uu qarxay dagaalkii sokeeye ee 1991-kii, wax badan oo ka mid ah kaabayaasha biyaha waa la burburiyay oo waxaa si xun loo waxyeeleeyey adeegyo bulshadeed oo ka jirey gudaha Soomaaliya sida caafimaadka, waxbarashada, biyaha iyo fayadhowrka. Maadaama Soomaaliya ay ku taal geyi aad u biyo-yar, horumarinta deegaameed, midda bulshadeed iyo dhaqaalaba waxay si baaxad weyn ugu tiirsan tahay ammaan biyo la hagaajiyey oo maareyn khayraad biyood oo wax-ku-ool ah leh.

Developing countries; especially in Africa, face great challenges in data and information management. While it is known that centralised database management is a good practice in the field of research, not many countries have managed to achieve this, even with the growing rate of knowledge of information and communication technology. Somalia faces even greater challenges than these countries due to the prolonged civil war. One and a half decade of the civil war in the country have resulted in loss and damage of most water & land related information collected in the previous half century. This report presents an inventory of the historical hydro-meteorological data that have been accumulated from various sources, and the hydrometeorological data that are currently being collected by SWALIM in collaboration with partner agencies

Soomaaliya waxay dabooshaa geyi ah 637,657 km2 oo dadka ku nool lagu qiyaasay in ay yihiin 7.5 milyan sanadkii 2003. Dhaqaalaha Soomaaliya wuxuu badanaa ku dhisan yahay beeraha (beeraha iyo xoolaha, tan dambe ayaa ah halbowlaha ugu weyn). Dhaqaalahu wuxuu si heer sare ah ugu tiirsan yahay helitaan biyood, taas oo iyana markeeda ku xiran roobka. Roobabka Soomaaliya ma aha mid yar oo kaliya, ka hoos 100 mm/sanadkii meelaha qaar, laakiin waxa uu leedahay isbedbedel sare oo xilliile iyo mid masaaxadeed (Lifaaqa 1 ilaa 5). Celceliska roobabka sanadle wuxuu dhexeeyaa 215 mm gudaha gobollada Waqooyi-bari ilaa uu ku dhawaado 550 mm gudaha gobollada Koonfureed iyo Bartamaha (SWALIM, 2007). Isudheelitirka biyaha dalka wuxuu muujinayaa uumibax ka badan roobabka ku daá gudaha dalka oo idil. Waxaa intaas dheer, xaalado kale oo biyo iyo oogo dhul (hydro-physical conditions) oo saamayn xun (tabane) ku leh helitaanka biyo saafi ah waxa ka mid ah xaaluf dhul iyo calwidda oogooyinka biyaha. Xaaladda waxaa sii xumaatay 16 sano oo dagaal sokeeye jirey, gaar ahaan gudaha gobollada koonfureed. Tiro ka mid ah ururada maxaliga iyo kuwa caalamiyeed waxay bilaabeen barnaamijyo dib-u-dhisid, dhawris deegaameed iyo taageerid hab-nololeed rayid. Khubaradadu waxay qiyaasayaan in Soomaaliya ay ka mid tahay 13 dal oo Afrikaan ah oo wajihi doona biyo yaraan sanadka 2025. Dal waxaa la yiraahadaa waa mid biyo yar marka biyaha sannadlaha ee halkii qofkii heli karo ay ka hoosayso 1000 m3. Durba, Soomaaliya waxay leedahay wax ka yar 500 m3/Qofkiiba/sanadkii (UNECA, 2000). Tan waxaa loo tiriyaa roob-di'id goosgoos u qaybsamida xilliile iyo tan masaaxadeed oo xaddiga celceliska sanadle uu u dhexeeya 100 iyo 800 mm, uumibax sare, iyo waxqabadyo aadame oo sii xumeeya nabaad guurka.

Developing countriesespecially in Africa, face great challenges in data and information management. While it is known that centralised database management is a good practice in the field of research, not many countries have managed to achieve this, even with the growing rate of knowledge of information and communication technology. Somalia faces even greater challenges than these countries due to the prolonged civil war. One and a half decade of the civil war in the country have resulted in loss and damage of most water and land related information collected in the previous half century. On the other hand, great numbers of agencies are working in Somalia with different objectives and activities, which have led to disintegration of information. Having realised this, land and water data management and exchange have become important components within the SWALIM project. SWALIM is trying to recover lost information from different sources all over the world and at the same time re-establish data collection networks in collaboration with partner agencies. One area of interest is information and data on hydro-meteorology. A lot of resources and efforts have been put into place by SWALIM in an effort to recover these lost data.