There is no doubt that the drought frequency, which is attributed to climate change and
variability among other causes, is increasing in both severity and length in all pastoral
areas of Ethiopia. It has been threatening pastoral societies of the Borana with
increasing substantial economic losses and humanitarian suffering in the last two
decades. We have a very recent shocking memory of the 2017 drought in the most
pastoral areas of Ethiopia including Borana zone that resulted in deaths of thousands
of livestock that turned thousands of people to be dependent on humanitarian aid; and
then it forced the country to spend $billions on relief. Though numerous researches
have been done on climate change adaptation practices, little study has been
conducted concerning the role of indigenous knowledge of pastoral communities in
climate change adaptation in specific ecological, social, economic, and institutional
context and the current range of mobility, and stock diversification. In this case, our
study aimed at investigating the role of Borana pastoralists’ indigenous knowledge in
drought risk reduction in southern Ethiopia. Multiple data sources, including
socioeconomic interviews with 352 household heads, focus group discussions, and key
informant interviews with pastoralists were used to capture various aspects of the
current drought and drought adaptation and coping practices. The study utilizes
multiple research designs and multistage random, purposive sampling methods. The
qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed and the findings indicated that mobility and stock diversity remain the most common method of coping with drought and is
recommended that supporting the traditional coping mechanisms and promoting viable
programs that support livestock and livelihoods due to the variability of their
environment.
