By Adan Mohamed - Reporter
6 January 2026 - The drought situation in Mandera County remains dire, with the region currently classified under the Alarm drought phase, and conditions continuing on a worrying downward trend.
The classification comes after multiple seasons of below-average rainfall, extended dry spells, and uneven rainfall distribution, severely limiting the regeneration of pasture and water sources across the county.
The crisis has triggered serious impacts on household food stability. Livestock are now forced to walk longer distances in search of water and pasture, resulting in poor body condition and a sharp decline in milk production key economic lifelines for many families.
The drop in milk yield and livestock health has further weakened household purchasing power, worsening food and nutrition security.
The most affected include children under five, pregnant and lactating mothers, older persons, and persons living with disabilities or disabilities-related vulnerabilities.
The current population affected by the drought is more than 335,000 residents in Mandera County currently require urgent humanitarian assistance due to hunger and drought-related vulnerabilities.
Livestock migration has also been reported within Mandera County and into neighbouring Wajir County, placing additional strain on the limited water and pasture resources and increasing the risk of resource-based tensions and conflict.
Several coordinated drought-response interventions are being carried out by government agencies and humanitarian partners to support affected communities: Water trucking to 266 distribution sites (203 for households and 63 for livestock), supported by 33 water bowsers deployed by the County Government.
Mandera County Governor, Mohamed Khalif while chairing a Disaster Risk Management Steering Group meeting, urged partners and local NGOs to accelerate humanitarian response efforts across all sub-counties to help avert the worsening drought crisis.
He emphasised the need for faster delivery of relief services, particularly to communities facing severe food shortages and limited access to water.
“We must act now to bring relief to our people — the drought will not wait, and neither should our response,” Governor Khalif said.
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The Governor further noted that investment in fodder production is essential to protect livestock, which remains the economic backbone of Mandera County and a key source of livelihood for thousands of families.
Chief Executive Officer of the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) Hared Hassan stated that 23 counties in Kenya are currently affected by drought. He added that the national government, in collaboration with humanitarian partners, has already rolled out mitigation measures in Mandera.
The interventions include the distribution of food and non-food items, the supply of livestock feed, and the fuelling of borehole engines and water-pumping systems in the most drought-affected areas to help sustain access to water for both households and livestock.
On livestock, the county faced the highest losses with more than 20,000 livestock lost during the drought period.
Mandera North is recorded to be the highest livestock lost at 7 184 deaths, predominantly goats and sheep followed by lafey with 4,468 deaths and Banissa with 3 059 deaths. These sub counties account for the largest proportion of total livestock losses in the county.
The resources pressure escalates mainly in pastoral and agro-pastoral areas due to delayed onset of rainfall which disrupted the planting calendar and as result of this farms were not planted with crops. This led to lower than normal and early depletion of household foods stocks.
Mandera County remains on emergency footing, with continued efforts directed at saving lives, protecting livestock-based livelihoods, and reinforcing community resilience and stability amid the escalating drought crisis.
Drought Crisis in Mandera Worsens as Hunger and Resource Pressure Escalate
Over 335,000 in Mandera Need Urgent Drought Aid
