The Building Resilient Market Systems in the Cross-border Drylands of the IGAD Region program targets to build resilient communities through strengthening market systems in IGAD Karamoja and Mandera clusters. The project focuses on increasing cross-border agricultural trade, domesticating regionally harmonized trade policies and disaster risk management, and supporting the implementation of IGAD Drought Disaster Resilience and Sustainability Initiative (IDDRSI) strategy.
The program is being implemented in two cross-border clusters:
The Karamoja Cluster (IGAD Cluster I) refers to a region that covers an area in Southwest Ethiopia, Northwest Kenya, Southeast South Sudan, and Northeast Uganda. It covers approximately 150,000 km2 and is occupied by at least 13 pastoralist and agro-pastoralist communities: including Bokora, Dessenech, Hammer, Didinga, Dodoth, Jie, Matheniko, Nyangatom, Surma, Thur, Pian, Pokot, Tepeth, Topotha, and Turkana. The shared border of the cluster is approximately 8,382 km2.
The Mandera Cluster (IGAD Cluster III) refers to the cross-border area between Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia. It comprises the Gedo Region in Somalia, Mandera County in Kenya, and Doolow in Ethiopia, and has a combined population of about 1.4 million people.
