Middle Shabelle
It is an administrative region in Southern Somalia that consists of four districts: Jowhar (the regional capital), Balad, Adale, Aden Yabal. Middle Shabelle is named after the Shabelle River which passes through the region for 150kilometers. It borders Galgaduud to the North, Hiraan to the West, Lower Shabelle and Banadir region to the South and the Indian Ocean to the East.
The region supports livestock production, rain-fed and irrigated agriculture and fisheries. The total population in the region is estimated at 514, 901. As of September 2014, the region hosts an estimated 51,000 IDPs (UNHCR total IDPs per region report, September 2014). The Middle Shabelle region has faced multiple hazards and calamities ranging from floods, low rainfall resulting in chronic food security and clan conflicts.
Long controlled by the Al-Shabaab, access to Jowhar by the humanitarian agencies was very limited until February 2013 when the Somali national army supported by AMISOM liberated the city. Since then, the region was managed by an interim administration appointed by the Somali government and access became increasingly possible, paving the way for humanitarian interventions to help the vulnerable IDPs.
In December 2014, the Shelter cluster carried out an infrastructure mapping exercise in Jowhar with an aim to map out the basic services that internally displaced people can access in their respective settlements. A total of nine IDP settlements were mapped out during the exercise (i.e. Jiliyaale, Jowhar airport, Kalagoye, Sheikh Oyaye, Sheikh Omar, Snaipiasa 1, Snaipiasa 2, Snaipiasa 3 and Snaipiasa 4.
For Middle Shabelle's meeting minutes, kindly visit the Banadir page.
Overview