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Below are some of the photographs I took during my visit to Somaliland last month as the inauguration of my @Vetenskapsradet-funded postdoctoral project on the impacts of droughts in dryland and savanna ecosystems. I hope you enjoy them & feel free to tweet me any questions. 1/n
Deciduous woodland is typical of Somaliland's landscape. This also comprises savanna and dense bushland with 3 to 5 meters tall trees including some reaching 9 meters. The climate is arid to semi-arid with annual rainfall of about 410 mm & mean temperature of 22°C. 2/n 
Although the greenery looks nice, it obscures a particular problem: Somaliland's landscape is infested with invasive mesquite Prosopis juliflora. This is a bush/tree native to Central America that suppresses locally native vegetation & consumes a lot of already scarce water. 3/n
Some places in Somaliland are awe-inspiring, such as the huge sycamores in the Geed Deeble forest I tweeted about earlier: 4/n
Somaliland faces a very high rate of deforestation. It is common to see truckloads of wood like these two rolling into major urban centers. There is weak/no regulation or documentation, so it is difficult to know where the wood comes from. 5/n
The largest cause of deforestation in Somaliland is production of charcoal, some of which is exported to Arab Gulf countries to be used in shisha/hookah/argileh. Erosion is another serious problem in the country and is a result of the ongoing deforestation and overgrazing. 6/n
It may seem counter-intuitive but these two work together. Deforestation reduces plant biomass, so the tree roots that hold the soil together disappear. Overgrazing worsens this because the soil gets compacted under the animals & reduces infiltration. 7/n
Agriculture is an important source of livelihood in Somaliland. Principal grain crop grown under rain-fed conditions is sorghum, followed by maize. Both crops are grown primarily for subsistence. The sector is dominated by smallholder farmers with average farm sizes of ~4 ha. 8/n
A good rainy season brings with it "barwaaqo" or prosperity, & the rains this year were good, at least in this part of Somaliland. The farms also grow different types of fruit & vegetable crops. These occupy relatively small areas, are grown mainly for commercial purposes. 9/n
Farms in Somaliland are scattered across the landscape and some are near perennial springs. This is one such farm that was located a few hours north of Hargeisa. The orchards in this farm are primarily citrus fruits and mangoes. 10/n
And yes, those oranges are green. The flesh of an orange is generally yellow or orange, but the color of the skin depends on where it grows. In warmer climates like in Somaliland the chlorophyll is preserved and the skin of the oranges remains green. 11/n
Here, I'm standing here next to a small grove of dwarf papaya trees in another farm. This particular section of the farm and the grove is grown by a relative of mine and we were welcomed to take some papayas home. And yes, they were quite delicious 🙂 12/n
Occasionally you will run into pastoral nomads. As with nomads elsewhere, they are a wealth of knowledge and can provide useful information about the land, climate and biodiversity. They are also your go-to people for fresh camel milk 😁 13/n
These are North Somali Zebu cattle near Cumar Aadan. They are believed to have descended from recent introductions of zebu from Asia. I was asked in jest by the young man tending to them if I wanted to buy one. You should have seen his face when I said, "yes, give me three". 14/n
The central market in Hargeisa is a busy place and was fully stocked with products, some local and others imported. A lot of things influence food security here including climate (e.g. drought/floods), access (e.g. conflict), economic insecurity (e.g. commodity speculation). 15/n
While there are many communities that are economically struggling in Somaliland, the situation is not as catastrophic as it is made out to be by foreign news outlets and some NGOs. IMHO, Somaliland doesn't have particularly unique problems that haven't been solved elsewhere. 16/n
As far as I could tell, the top five factors that negatively affects livelihoods in Somaliland are: (1) lack economic opportunities (i.e. jobs), (2) lack of modern infrastructure that bolsters resilience to climate (e.g. water retention, delivery, and drainage), ... 17/n
... (3) lack of robust policies AND their enforcement, (4) lack of awareness of how environmental problems are linked to livelihoods, and finally (5) an over-dependence on short-term (low-tech, low-risk, low-gain) projects driven by outside actors. 18/n
