Sida's work in Somalia
In Somalia, Sweden supports, among other things, peacebuilding, democracy, human rights, inclusive economic development, equitable health, and the environment, climate and energy. Sida’s humanitarian aid saves lives and alleviates suffering for the most vulnerable people.
Important thematic areas in Somalia
Why does Sida work in Somalia?
Violent conflicts
Somalia is characterised by many parallel conflicts. There is an armed conflict between the armed group Al-Shabaab, which controls large parts of the country, and government forces. At the same time, there are violent conflicts between different clans fighting for power and land. People face high security risks and millions have been displaced within the country.
Recurrent humanitarian crises and disasters
Somalia is subject to recurrent climate-related disasters such as severe and recurrent droughts and floods, leading to serious humanitarian crises with severe food shortages and risk of starvation. A large part of the population has been displaced within the country. Agriculture and livestock, the backbone of the country’s economy, are severely affected, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis and hampering recovery and development.
The population is vulnerable
Somalia is one of the poorest countries in the world. Health care is in short supply, human rights are not respected and freedom of expression is limited. Female genital mutilation and child marriage are common. High unemployment and widespread corruption exacerbate the situation, hindering development and worsening people’s situation.
Challenges remain
State-building and accountability
Through the UN-funded Somalia Joint Fund (SJF), Sida has helped Somalia to develop a framework for reconciliation processes and to begin its implementation. This support has strengthened coordination between state actors, civil society and international organisations. The framework enables more actors, such as youth and women’s organisations, to participate in peace and reconciliation processes.
Strengthening people’s resilience to climate change
To enable people and communities to withstand recurring natural disasters and climate change, it is important to strengthen their capacity for recovery.
Sida supports, among other things, people in hard-to-reach areas who rely on agriculture and livestock farming by providing climate-smart farming methods, water and sanitation. This improves health and water access for households, animals and crops, thereby increasing resilience to crises.
Basic healthcare for more people
Through Sida’s support, more people have gained access to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services, including through Save the Children’s programmes. For example, in 2025, over half a million people gained access to SRHR services, such as antenatal and maternity care, as well as medical and psychological support for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.
Sidas work in Somalia
In Somalia, Sida conducts development cooperation that contributes to the country’s long-term development. We also provide humanitarian support to save lives and alleviate suffering in emergency situations.
Sweden, through Sida, is one of the largest donors. To improve people’s living conditions and reduce poverty, we work in the following areas: peacebuilding, democracy, human rights and equal health, as well as the environment, climate and energy.
Millions of Somalis are in need of humanitarian assistance in one of the world’s worst and most protracted humanitarian crises. Child malnutrition remains at alarming levels. Sida’s humanitarian support provides people with access to food, health care, shelter, water and sanitation.
Sida works with international humanitarian and civil society organisations and prioritises the people most in need of support.
Sida’s humanitarian support in Somalia saves lives and alleviates suffering.
- Danish Refugee Council DRC’s website
- Action Against Hunger AAH’s website
- UN Humanitarian Fund for Somalia (SHF) on OCHA’s website
- International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)’s website
- UN Children’s Fund UNICEF’s website
- United Nations Food Programme FAO’s website
- FAO’s Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit FSNAU’s website
Learn more about Sida’s analysis of the humanitarian crisis, Sida’s support and how much money is distributed to each organisation in Sida’s crisis analysis.
To build peaceful development and reduce the risk of people either turning to violent extremism or being forcibly recruited, Sida works to include marginalised groups in politics and business. Sida also supports sustainable economic development, which gives people better opportunities to find work.
Sida supports vulnerable migrants who face hardship along the migration route, as well as those who return voluntarily. Support is directed both towards improving Somalia’s capacity to manage migration and towards the people who migrate.
Here are some examples of programmes and projects that Sida supports:
Through Sida’s partnership with Mercy Corps, we are working to boost productivity and competitiveness in Somalia’s livestock sector, which forms a significant part of the country’s economy and livelihoods. Our work contributes to the inclusive and sustainable development of the livestock value chain. Furthermore, Sida’s support contributes to improved access to financial services for micro and small enterprises within the sector. Particular emphasis is placed on strengthening women’s economic empowerment through increased access to finance and business development support. This contributes to higher productivity, increased incomes and greater resilience to crises.
Sweden’s development cooperation, provided through Sida, supports democratic development and greater respect for human rights and gender equality.
Here are some examples of the programmes and projects we support:
Women are under-represented in the country’s political system. Through Sida, Sweden chairs the steering committee of the UN’s Somalia Joint Fund (SJF). Through this involvement, Sida has been able to influence the projects that have been approved and to work towards ensuring that more young people and women are involved in decision-making processes.
Many people in Somalia lack access to basic public services and tax revenues to the government are very limited. Sida’s support to the World Bank is helping to strengthen public financial management and increase tax revenues. Slowly but surely, it is helping to improve citizens’ access to basic services.
Sida also supports co-operation between Swedish and Somali authorities – for example via Statistics Sweden, the Public Health Agency of Sweden and Stockholm University – to strengthen the Somali state administration.
Sweden also supports other forms of services such as livelihood support to vulnerable groups.
Journalists are regularly harassed in Somalia. Both Al-Shabaab and state institutions are behind many arbitrary arrests and attacks on journalists, as a way to silence independent voices. Sida supports International Media Support, Fojo and BBC Media Action, which work for an independent, stronger and free media sector in Somalia.
Through Sida’s support, the safety of journalists has been strengthened, the quality of journalism has increased, and Somalia has received its first higher education programme for journalists.
To ensure that people and communities are better prepared for recurring climate crises and natural disasters, our work focuses on supporting resilience and adaptation to a changing climate.
Here are examples of programmes and projects that Sida supports:
Somalia’s capacity to recover from drought, floods and other natural disasters is low. Through the Somali Resilience Programme, Sida is helping people who rely primarily on livestock farming to cope better with recurring crises. This has become even more important in the context of the severe drought.
Through Sida’s support for the Building Resilience in Somalia (BRCiS) project, Sida has, in 2025, helped hundreds of households to significantly improve their ability to cope with climate shocks. This has been achieved, for example, by providing training to local people in vegetable and fruit cultivation, and by working to rehabilitate land areas.
To withstand climate shocks, communities need both the capacity for self-sufficiency and protective measures to withstand extreme events. Through its support for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Sida has worked to construct around 240 kilometres of irrigation channels and to reinforce over 6 kilometres of river banks. The channels help to ensure water supplies for food production during droughts and act as flood defences during the rainy season.
Sida supports health services in Somalia to give people better access to health care. We provide direct support to health clinics and strengthen government institutions working in health.
Here is an example of a programme that Sida supports:
Through support to Save the Children International’s programme, which Sweden supports together with Switzerland, hundreds of thousands of women and children have gained access to maternal and child health services. Save the Children Somalia also played an important role in formulating the updated Essential Package of Health Services (EPHS) strategy on which the World Bank’s health support is modelled, and in which sexual and reproductive health and rights are a key component.
Sida has also contributed to strengthening capacity within the Ministry of Health and the National Institute of Health, specifically with health data management and the ability to detect, track and control disease outbreaks.
The Swedish government’s strategy for development cooperation in Somalia has been extended until 31 June 2026, or until the government decides on a new strategy.
Updated: March 16, 2026