Perception Survey of Aid Recipients in Somalia

Before the first case of COVID-19 was officially confirmed on 16 March 2020, Somalia was in a state of emergency resulting from the worst locust infestation in 25 years. With food supplies already under threat, the infestation was exacerbated by heavy floods, which not only displaced half a million people, but also provided ideal conditions for the locusts to flourish.

The cumulative impact of previous climate- and conflict-related shocks, as well as the more recent socio-economic impact of the pandemic have left 5.2 million people in need of humanitarian assistance across Somalia. Between July and September 2020, 1.3 million people were facing high levels of acute food insecurity– a number which is expected to increase to 2.1 million by the end of the year, in the absence of humanitarian assistance. To better understand affected people’s perceptions of the pandemic and to inform the rapidly evolving humanitarian response, Ground Truth Solutions surveyed 1,533 aid recipients across 17 of the 18 Somali regions from 7 to 22 September 2020.