An Op Ed by Justin Brady, the Head of Office, UNOCHA Somalia

There is a proverb that says, “A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit.” The author of the proverb was underlying the importance of a strong foundation for future generations to build upon. In the past three decades, few such trees have been planted in Somalia, leaving its people as one of the most vulnerable in the world to climactic shocks, that have grown more frequent and severe due to a changing climate.

In the absence of preventative action, Somalia has become synonymous with multi-hundred-million-dollar appeals for humanitarian aid that balloon to more than a billion dollars when drought takes hold.

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