Mercy Corps - Africa: Dembal, Ethiopia

Ali, 50, is a livestock trader. Through the PRIME project, Mercy Corps opened a slaughterhouse in nearby Jijiga that buys animals from him. Since he no longer has to export them to Addis Ababa on the other side of the country, his livelihood has improved significantly.As climate change gets worse, Ali says, local pastoralists are bracing for longer droughts. “People in this area predict rain through their experience and using the stars,” he says. “They know how to forecast it very well. They see the stars and the signs in the wind and use different indicators to predict the coming rain season. This year they are very afraid.”
Dembal, Ethiopia, March 2019

Ali, 50, is a livestock trader. Through the PRIME project, Mercy Corps opened a slaughterhouse in nearby Jijiga that buys animals from him. Since he no longer has to export them to Addis Ababa on the other side of the country, his livelihood has improved significantly. 

As climate change gets worse, Ali says, local pastoralists are bracing for longer droughts. “People in this area predict rain through their experience and using the stars,” he says. “They know how to forecast it very well. They see the stars and the signs in the wind and use different indicators to predict the coming rain season. This year they are very afraid.”