Tree Planting in Semi-Arid Urban Areas: Lessons from Somalia

This article is based on ‘Green Garowe’, a tree planting action research project that was conducted in the drought-affected city of Garowe, Puntland state, Somalia. The project embraced a co-production approach that called for collaboration between the local government of Garowe, community members and Puntland State University researchers. A qualitative research approach was adopted with a tree-planting demonstration that enabled the research team to develop a holistic understanding of the enablers and constraints to tree planting in the city of Garowe. The findings revealed that tree planting in the city of Garowe was low due to social, ecological, climatic and economic conditions. The study also revealed that Garowe had a high tree deficit, necessitating the planting of 90 000 trees by the year 2030. Evidence from the tree planting demonstration revealed that trees can grow in semi-arid urban areas like Garowe with a success rate of over 90% only if they are taken care of and well protected. The study also revealed the significance of engaging local leaders in the fight against climate change through tree planting initiatives. The study further emphasises the importance of adequate public education and awareness campaigns on climate change, establishment of proper policies and legal frameworks on environmental conservation, better resource mobilisation strategies and relevant research on tree planting and care as key ingredients in promoting urban greening and combating climate change and its impacts as highlighted by SDG 13.