Somalia’s flag Leaving Somalia There has been fighting in Somalia for more than 25 years Different clans or tribes have been fighting for power over the country This has made Somalia a very dangerous place to live It is often called a failed state This means that the government is too weak to run the country It cannot keep its people safe Refugee camps like this one are home to thousands of Somali refugees UN Rights of the Child Every child has rights Rights are privileges and freedoms that are protected by law Refugees have the right to special protection and help The United Nations UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is a document that lists the rights that all children should have Think about these rights as you read this book Somalia is also one of the poorest countries Frequent droughts have destroyed crops and livestock This means that there is often not enough food to feed Somali people Many people have been forced to flee their homes to escape either starvation or violence Some have tried to find safety in other parts of Somalia They are internally displaced persons IDPs 4
Red Sea Eritrea Yemen Sudan Arabian Sea Gulf of Aden Djibouti Ethiopia Somalia Indian Ocean Kenya Mogadishu Somalia is on the Horn of Africa the most eastern part of Africa Somalia shares borders with Kenya Ethiopia and Djibouti More than two million people have fled Somalia Most live as refugees in camps in neighboring African countries Refugees are people who flee their homeland to escape war or other unsafe conditions Refugees are different from immigrants Immigrants chose to leave to look for better opportunities in another country Refugees often have no choice They must leave to stay alive 5 Food and water can be in limited supply at refugee camps Women carry heavy containers of water that they collect from a well near the camps
Mogadishu Somalia has grassy plains and mountain highlands Its capital city is Mogadishu My Homeland Somalia Somali people living on the coast have traded with people from countries such as Egypt and Syria for centuries Spices and cloth from Asia were traded for gold from Africa Later England took over a lot of Somalia which it named British Somaliland Italy held a smaller region Somalia was created in 1960 with the country gaining independence Its western border with Ethiopia was decided by the British and Italians with little thought for the people living on either side This caused problems for Ethiopia and Somalia who would later fight for control of the land Hargeisa is the second-largest city in Somalia 6
Population of Somalia Somalia’s Story in Numbers 10 3 million 2 1 million Population of Mogadishu Many Somali people raise livestock such as cows sheep goats and camels to sell to other countries Most Somalis are Muslims A few are descendants of the African tribes that were captured by Europeans and sold into slavery hundreds of years ago Somalia is made up of clans Somalia consists partly of desert For centuries people were livestock herders who moved from place to place Today many Somalis survive by farming crops such as corn This provides just enough food for their families Somalia’s small fishing industry has been harmed by rising ocean temperatures which kill fish and overfishing which is when people take too many fish from the sea This can mean that some types of fish die out 7
