Gargaar is a non-governmental, non-profit making organization registered with the Somaliland Ministry of Planning (Reg No: L.43.13.334).  Established 1996 in Hargeysa the capital of a then newly established state of Somaliland (within the borders of what was formerly British Somaliland) during a period of political insecurity and social unrest perpetuated by widespread armament amongst the youth and young male population following years of civil war and the consequent collapse of the Somali Republic into autonomous states. This period was characterized by extreme humanitarian suffering and social strife perpetuated by the lack of governance structures and social challenges that came with resettlement of a displaced refugee population that returned empty handed to their homes and towns completely obliterated by indiscriminate bombardment.

the organization initially began its work with a ‘football for guns’ campaign and provision of vocational skills training to young militias in carpentry, mechanics and welding in order to provide them with skills to make an honest living and deter them from gun culture, violent robbery and partaking in clan based conflicts that were taking place at the time and were a a serious threat to further destabilizing the region at time. Somaliland was going through a rebuilding phase after the civil war destroyed most of the infrastructure and there was a shortage of skilled professionals. The project proved to be very successful and soon more youth football teams began to emerge and there was a high demand for more skills training.

The violence witnessed firsthand by the population of Somaliland during the civil war led to many people becoming deeply traumatized. Considering Gargaar’s executive management experience in the field of psychosocial therapy (the founding director was one of the few qualified Somali psychiatry doctors) decided to respond to this problem through provision of PTSD training for school teachers nationwide throughout Somaliland in a training of trainer’s scheme designed to enable public school teachers to identify trauma amongst school children and provide the necessary psychosocial support.

Over time basic education for orphaned children and functional literacy & numeracy for teenage girls, advocacy for minority and marginalized communities, HIV/AIDS, humanitarian relief and Self-Help Groups (SHG) projects were introduced into the work of Gargaar for a more holistic aid & development program.

Gargaar is a regional pioneer in the promotion of Self Help Groups Approach. SHGs are a sustainable people’s institutions that have become a social movement for change through community micro-credit and collective action. In response to growth in of promotion of SHG approach by other NGO’s in Somaliland, Gargaar with the support of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MoLSA) established national SHG Working Group. This increased learning sharing and collaborative efforts amongst different development actors as well as to facilitate synergy and linkages amongst SHG development actors nationally.

Due to recurring droughts over the past 10 years that engulfed mainly the pastoralist communities in Somaliland becoming displaced after losing their livestock that for most are their sole livelihoods, Gargaar has established humanitarian assistance within its core approach and in some cases innovatively utilized existing community-based organizations namely SHGs to take the lead in implementation and distribution of life saving aid to the most in need drought displaced communities. In addition, Gargaar has built an effective humanitarian program that enables for rapid response to humanitarian situations in the most difficult to reach remote areas of the country through direct cash-transfer or food aid assistance to thousands of to drought affected families in most difficult to reach remote rural communities across Somaliland.

Since our establishment in Somaliland over 26 years ago Gargaar has continued to work in promoting political stability and social development at regional and national levels through the implementation of practical and pioneering programs. These efforts have contributed towards strengthening peace and stability in Somaliland and we remain committed to continuing our work until realization of our organizational vision.