The Impacts of Mass Migration: Case Study of the 2011 Somalia Famine

On July 20, 2011, the United Nations declared a famine in southern Somalia, impacting over 3.1 million people and triggering mass migration within Somalia and to neighboring countries. Mass migration, characterized by the large-scale movement of people nationally or internationally, offers opportunities and challenges for origin and destination societies. In migration, an origin society is one from which people migrate, while the destination society is one which migrants head towards. Using the 2011 Somalia famine as a case study, this essay explores the benefits and risks of migration, providing an overview of the famine and analyzing its implications for affected societies. 

Somalia, with its large population of nomadic pastoral groups, historically experiences constant movement throughout the year independent of local stress factors like drought and food scarcity. However, the famine in 2011 was unique both because of the famine’s severity—caused by a combination of multiple factors—and the magnitude of people that it displaced. These qualities of Somalia’s famine demonstrate the severity and widespread impact of the crisis (Maxwell and Fitzpatrick 2012). In a general sense, famine is characterized by an extreme scarcity of food and resources for a prolonged period. But often these crises arrive alongside other events that compound the severity and negative impact of famine. In Somalia, the famine was caused by a combination of compounding factors such as severe drought, dependency on food imports, and political instability, including conflicts involving Al-Shabaab, which limited humanitarian aid access. 

Rainfall in Somalia occurs in two cycles: deyr (short rains from October to December) and gu (long rains from March to June). In late 2010 rainfall during the deyr season was at the lowest recorded level in 50 years and caused abnormally large numbers of people to migrate internally in early 2011 from the origin societies of the Low Shabelle and Bakool to the destination societies of the capital city of Mogadishu. The much larger distress migration began in June after the gu rains also failed (Maxwell and Fitzpatrick 2012). Despite the significant contribution of pastoralist and agricultural communities, which constitute over 80% of the Somali population, to local food production, their ability to sustain livestock and crops has diminished, impacting rural incomes (Achour and Lacan, 2011). This has necessitated heavy reliance on imported food, including both commercial imports and food aid, even during years of favorable rainfall. As a result, any increase in the international price of food would exacerbate the existing food access crisis in Somalia (Maxwell and Fitzpatrick 2012). This positive correlation between imported food prices and food scarcity highlights the vulnerability of Somalia’s food security to global market dynamics and external shocks. Food and humanitarian aid, however, is few and far between in Somalia due to the long-lasting political instability and violence. Somalia has not had a central government since 1991, thus, most of southern Somalia was under the authority of local warlords throughout the 1990s. Recently, Al-Shabaab, the Islamist terrorist group, has taken majority control of the country (Maxwell and Fitzpatrick 2012). This issue runs deeper as Somalia has not had an effective central government since the overthrow of the Siad Barre regime in 1991, and which has been mostly under the control of Al-Shabaab since 2007. Somalia has not had a central government since 1991 when the Siad Barre regime was toppled, and was in a state of civil war for several years prior to that. Most of southern Somalia was under the authority of local warlords or militias throughout the 1990s (Maxwell and Fitzpatrick 2012). Most recently, the fighting between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) on one side, and the Islamist insurgent group, Al-Shabaab on the other, was also a major cause of the famine with the most affected regions being Low Shabelle and Bakool. This conflict further prevented pastoralist families from getting access to assistance during the food crisis, forcing them to migrate farther.

The primary risks for origin societies, such as rural regions like Lower Shabelle and Bakool, include the loss of productive working-age individuals, which disrupts the local labor market and subsequent agricultural outputs. Additionally, migration often fractures social structures and community cohesion. Intricate system of partnerships and co-dependencies within regional groups are frequently disrupted as people migrate out of their origin society. People who rely on one another to help with agricultural tasks or education are forced to recreate relationships with different people as members of a local community emigrate. This recurring need to reorganize relationships within a community because of migration-related local population decline produces fissures within the delicate social networks of these regions. So as not to overstate the harms of migration, a few important benefits are worthy of note.

One is a slight reduction in strain on resources for those who remain. This occurs because fewer people remain in the original society which in turn decreases the demand for resources such as food, housing, and water. This means that there is less competition for food and water which may increase the resource availability for those remaining. However, in extreme cases such as famine, the benefits of reduced strain are often negligible as the resources that remain may still be inadequate. Lower resources induced by famine conditions worsen over time, often disproportionally compared to the rate of outward migration. Thus, the potential benefit of migration during famine conditions is negligible. Ultimately, the extensive strain on resources, especially during famine, can force individuals to migrate, both internally and externally, as was the case in Somalia. 

The main region within Somalia that received internally displaced persons was the capital city of Mogadishu. However, a significant portion of migrants within Somalia looked to other nations. Many decided, either because of their connections abroad or geographical proximity to nearby national borders, to move to neighboring countries around east Africa. Kenya received the biggest share of these migrants, with 68,890 new refugees coming in between January and July 2011. Ethiopia came second, receiving 56,720 refugees and Yemen third with 10,208 refugees (Achour and Lacan 2011). Although most Somali migrants were recognized as refugees, they were only granted limited access to social protection and benefits, namely because of the difficulty they face in obtaining documentation in those countries (Achour and Lacan 2011). While these workers may have benefited socially and economically, they risked unfair exploitation and human rights violations (UNCSD Secretariat 2012). This leads into a few of the risks that these destination societies take on which include strains on social services, challenges of integration and xenophobia. Migration and changes in mobility patterns can also increase the risk of violent conflict in destination societies. In areas facing resource scarcity, large influxes of people can strain limited resources, increasing competition and the risk of local conflicts. Additionally, migration often brings together communities without shared conflict resolution mechanisms, which further heightens the potential for violence (Grand 2021). 

However, these destination communities also experienced many benefits. They experienced an increased labour force, an increase in cultural exchange, and a demographic rejuvenation in aging populations. Even though many migrants were low-skilled, they contributed to filling gaps in sectors that may have been struggling to attract workers such as agriculture, construction, and service industries. The influx of younger migrants helped balance the age distribution, easing the pressure on healthcare and pension systems that struggle to support an aging populace. All together, these are factors that help boost an economy and strengthen social bonds to create a more diverse and rich community. 

This paper examines the 2011 Somalia famine to highlight the benefits and challenges of mass migration. For southern Somalia, the origin society, migration provided temporary relief on the demand of resources, but also reduced the labour force. For destination societies, such as Kenya and Yemen, migration increased their workforce and expanded their cultural exchange while simultaneously applying more pressure on social services and valuable resources. This case study illustrates that while migration can offer temporary solutions during crises, it also exposes vulnerabilities that require international cooperation and long-term solutions to ensure equitable outcomes for both migrants, origin societies, and host communities. 

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