In January 2026, a comprehensive report by ReliefWeb provides a stark look into the lives of people across Somalia, painting a picture of a nation trapped in an ever-tightening cycle of hardship. Titled "We are stuck in a vicious cycle" People in Somalia on resilience, livelihoods, and aid, the analysis reveals that Somalis see their situations becoming increasingly precarious, with the challenges they face seeming more intractable than ever before.
A Nation Yearning for More Than Just Survival
The research, based on a survey of 7,460 individuals across 11 districts, highlights a clear desire among communities for support that goes beyond immediate survival. People want assistance that helps them build better, more independent futures, reducing their reliance on aid and increasing their capacity to withstand shocks. However, the report finds that many Somalis are instead caught in a cycle characterized by fragile livelihoods, diminishing social support networks, widening inequality, and accelerating risks associated with climate change.
"People across Somalia see their situations becoming more precarious, and the challenges they confront becoming more intractable," the report's executive summary states. "To address this, people want support which helps them build better futures, not just meet their immediate needs."
Defining and Measuring Resilience
Communities themselves defined resilience for the study as the ability to withstand an income shock without losing one’s assets, resources, or livelihoods entirely. This means minimizing losses during a crisis and allowing households to maintain their level of wellbeing as they recover. Using this definition, the report introduces a perception-based resilience index covering five key dimensions identified by participants: access to assets and livelihoods, social capital, climate coping capacity, and access to services and security.
Respondents were unequivocal: without reliable livelihoods, access to basic services, and the resources to adapt to a changing climate, resilience remains firmly out of reach for most.
Key Findings: A Multi-Faceted Crisis
1. The Need for Balanced Support
Somalis express a desire for aid that balances immediate life-saving needs with long-term development goals. They need support that helps them survive today while also providing pathways to escape precarity tomorrow. This includes both essential humanitarian aid and interventions that leave lasting improvements in basic services, local economies, and infrastructure.
While food insecurity and hunger remain urgent problems, the lack of livelihood opportunities emerges as the single biggest challenge people report facing. Significantly, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), despite being a primary focus of humanitarian efforts, expressed the highest levels of dissatisfaction with aid, with 68% sharing negative views on its effectiveness.
2. Livelihoods: Central to Resilience, Critically Under Threat
Livelihoods are at the core of how people perceive their ability to cope and thrive. A staggering 53% of respondents cited the lack of livelihood opportunities as their community's biggest challenge. Almost half feel pessimistic about the future prospects of their livelihoods.
Efforts to adapt to the changing climate are widespread but often hampered by resource constraints. Over 85% of farmers and pastoralists stated they have considered changing or improving their practices to maintain production during difficult times. However, a lack of financial resources stands as the primary barrier to implementing these adaptations.
Casual laborers, disproportionately representing IDPs, women, and marginalized groups, face particularly bleak conditions. Their work is characterized as unstable, overcrowded, and low-paid, offering little hope for improvement.
3. Eroding Social Support and Cooperation
Despite social capital being identified as a key driver of resilience, communities report that these vital support networks are under immense pressure. A concerning 71% of respondents said they have no one to turn to for financial help during a crisis. Nearly half (49%) believe communities rarely cooperate to solve common problems, largely attributing this to a lack of resources.
4. Climate Shocks Exacerbate Existing Vulnerabilities
The impacts of a worsening climate are felt acutely across Somalia, compounding existing vulnerabilities. While cities are also affected, IDPs and rural residents express the least confidence in their ability to withstand future climate shocks. Half of rural respondents felt their communities did not cope well with climate hazards, and nearly as many lacked confidence in their household's ability to withstand such events without falling deeper into poverty. Similar levels of concern were voiced by IDPs.
Communities consistently call for strengthened water infrastructure and better access to climate information and early warnings to help them manage these growing risks.
Disparities Deepen: Who Fares Worst?
The report highlights stark inequalities across all dimensions of resilience. IDPs, women, people living in rural areas, and marginalized groups consistently fare the worst. They face greater barriers to accessing assets, services, and opportunities, and have fewer resources to cope with shocks or adapt to change. This disparity underscores how the crisis disproportionately affects the most vulnerable segments of the population.
Looking Ahead: A Call for Sustainable Solutions
The findings paint a challenging picture for Somalia. People are trapped in a cycle where immediate needs overshadow long-term planning, climate change erodes their coping mechanisms, and social support networks fray under the strain. Aid, while necessary, is often perceived as inadequate or poorly targeted, particularly for those most in need like IDPs.
The report concludes by emphasizing the need for a shift in approach. Humanitarian and development efforts must be better sequenced and combined, focusing not just on meeting immediate needs but on building sustainable livelihoods, strengthening social safety nets, and investing in climate resilience. Only then can Somalia's people begin to break free from the vicious cycle and build the more secure and independent futures they desperately desire.
