William Brangham:
Any project that helps support and anchor young men to their community is, according to the U.N., an important part of counterterrorism. USAID’s and other donors’ plan was to considerably expand the project to pipe well water further, so triple the acreage could be farmed. More training and supplies were to come, along with a large dammed basin to capture and store rainwater.
But then, only two years into the project, USAID’s work was stopped. So what this community was left with is a project that was showing tremendous promise, was benefiting dozens of families in this area. But now, because of these cuts, this project will likely never be finished.
Contrast that with this. The Isiolo Livestock Market was started over 10 years ago with large support from USAID. Today, it’s a bustling, thriving monument to economic empowerment and organization. Two days a week, herders from across the region come here to sell their livestock. Different tribes of different faiths haggle and negotiate in a free, secure, and open marketplace.
Mohammed Wario oversees the market. He says that, for many years, herders would often get taken advantage of by dishonest brokers who would lie to them about market prices. But, here, with so many customers bidding, herders get the best, fairest prices. People can change money through a supervised system. And because of the guaranteed crowds, a perimeter marketplace was built for local women to sell products.
