Somalia: Anticipatory action in advance of 'wicked crises'

This study set out to identify how best to support pastoralists and farmers before a food security crisis became fully developed in three different parts of Somalia. Additionally, it wanted to find out the best time and window of opportunity for any support strategies that we could identify. This study offers insights from a real-time study of people’s lives in Somalia during 2020–2022, looking at how crisis-affected people take their own anticipatory action. 

This paper argues that the challenge of understanding how and when to use anticipatory action in wicked crises is much greater than may be appreciated. That challenge is not simply in finding the resources; it is very hard to know how resources can best be used as a wicked crisis gets worse. The more that challenge is acknowledged, the greater the hope that collective and collaborative learning by many agencies will lead to more effective strategies in the future.