Pacifying Somalia: How KDF Smart Farms Are Helping To conserve The Environment

DHOBLEY, Somalia Oct 14 – While the frontline can provide a tough environment for soldiers due to the unpredictability of the threat that they face on a daily basis – a place that connects them to nature is something that many look forward to visiting in order to enable them to meditate and blow off some steam.

In Sector two’s Dhobley Forward Operating Base in Somalia, a botanical garden that also doubles up as a smart farm is now providing an infinite healing environment to many exposed to the vagaries of war.

The sounds of the mini waterfall accompanied by the fluttering of the wind at the smart garden in the Dhobley Forward Operating Base, add to the calm in the middle of the mental storm posed by the threats that soldiers face on patrol while enforcing the peace in the border town of Somalia.

“The concept that this project is anchored on is a therapeutic and tonic environment that offers maximum relaxation atmosphere for our soldiers after a long day at work. This project is also anchored as a learning tool for the local community outside here,“ Sr. Sergeant Godfrey Adawo, manager Dhobley Smart Farm said during an interview with Shahidi News.

As the water laps into the ponds below, many say that it flows with their thoughts as the breeze they take in, gives them solace in the midst of active battle.

“We normally bring soldiers here for counseling that they need. when the environment out there during their operations is pressing hard on them. Another objective of this project is socio-economic. It offers soldiers an opportunity to immensely earn when they go back home,” he said.

Different species of fish in the pond are part of the diet in the base and a future source of income.

“We have three interconnecting fishponds. We have tilapia variant, whose capacity we have here is 250 fingerlings from the age of two weeks to three months. We have done our first batch that has been released to the community and to our soldiers within our DPs which have consumed the first batch of 300. We are looking forward to harvesting these ones after seven months,” Snr. Sgt Adawo said.

Within this garden are various aspects of farming, smartly laid out with space for meditation and reflection after a tedious day of work.

Senior Sergeant Adawo says that this initiative of the tenth AMISOM command has become a learning point – different groups visit it to learn on modern and economic ways to farm within a small space and produce high yields.

In order to secure the future of the coming generations, the soldiers have embarked on a tree planting initiative to increase the forest cover in Dhobley, a project that they say is also undertaken back home.

“We have indigenous variants of trees like Neem, Moringa olifera, and almond trees. These are drought-resistant trees that normally require less water to survive. So they are very much in this environment an added plus for the community around. We also have by-products of these trees which act as herbal medicine like the neem tree, which has medicinal values,“ Sr. Sergeant Adawo said.

The soldiers plant a variety of vegetables in the garden as well as rearing poultry that supplement the diets at the different messes within the base.

“We breed the local variants which is the indigenous chicken. So far, in our stock, we have 56 chicks and in the incubator, we have 128 eggs, previously we have donated to the community 60 chicks and they are breeding. This is used as a learning tool. Most of them use this model to elevate their living standard,” 

The project is used as a learning tool for the local community as well as the soldiers themselves – The AMISOM 10 team that spearheads the project believes this model can elevate the living standards of many in the area.