The Impacts of Covid-19 Pandemic on Pastoral Community of Somali Region in Ethiopia

Abstract

The Somali Regional State of Ethiopia has suffered the highest number of COVID-19 cases, and infections are rapidly rising. The impact of the crisis on lives and livelihoods of pastoral community is expected to be particularly severe. Coronavirus diseases 2019), had health impacts practically on every community in the world generally and particularly most of the pastoral communities inhabiting the remotest areas of the region have limited access to information on the pandemic and have poor health systems with limited reach to the most vulnerable.

Pastoral communities are at a high risk of interacting with zoonotic infectious diseases, owing to their livestock management practices, which include herd mixing and transhumance and the locations they occupy especially their contact with wildlife - as well as the consumption of bush meat among some pastoral communities.

 In this quick Review we focused on pastoral public health initiatives to safeguard health access and mobility while addressing the direct health effects of COVID-19. In order to effectively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and safeguard pastoral livelihoods and Health security, it is necessary to take a contextualized one health approach, taking into account how the pandemic will interact with current shocks and vulnerabilities in pastoral areas of the Somali region.