When camel cross borders, so can peace and prosperity

For generations, communities living along the Kenya-Ethiopia border – including the Borana, Gabra, Gare, Burji, Sakuya and Somali have shared grazing lands, languages, cultures, trade, and a way of life built around livestock as their primary source of food and income. Yet the region has also lived with recurring conflict, competition over resources and the disruption that insecurity brings to families and communities. For three days in August 2026, representatives of these communities, from Kenya and Ethiopia, came together for the first-ever cross-border camel caravan in Moyale. Along with 12-kilometre journey, came cultural dances and songs, community dialogues, and unique cultural practices, while celebrating the role of camels in their communities. 

The caravan revived a long forgotten cultural peace practice called Qumbi. Prior to the event, the Borana and Gabra communities conducted this intercommunal peace ceremony, which involves among others, exchange of customary incense, to bring peace and harmony to the region. The Qumbi ceremony was last held forty years ago. 

The event was officially flagged off by Mr. Benedict Munywoki, Deputy County Commissioner, Moyale Sub-County, Kenya, and Mr. Galma Koropicha, Mayor of Moyale Town, Ethiopia. During the journey, they planted fruit trees in schools and hospitals. 

“These fruit trees are permanent footprints and a reminder for the communities and institutions that hosted the caravan,” explains Bethlehem Abebe of IGAD CEWARN.

Through the caravan, communities shared traditions and heritage and rebuilt connections. For women, it was an opportunity to highlight the economic power of an animal they rely on every day. For young people, it offered a glimpse of new businesses that can grow from pastoralism. 

More than just an animal

For pastoral families, camels have multiple uses. Asli Ali Dido, a camel owner from Butie, in Moyale Sub-County explains. 

“Camels provide milk, even when other sources of food are scarce. It is sold in case of medical emergencies or to pay school fees. It is a means of transport for children, the sick and the elderly people and for carrying household belongings during migration in search of pasture and water.

Because camels have a long lactation period and can produce up to ten liters of milk per day, for women like Asli, this regular income provide a measure of security and independence. 

“We get oil from the camel hump. A big camel can give us up to twenty liters of good natural oil that we use to cook and even sell the surplus,” says Hawo Kontoma, secretary of Bakalcha women group in Moyale. 

She explains that camels also have deep cultural significance. The families store fermented camel milk for visitors and dry its meat and preserve it for months in a form called ‘nyirinyiri’ or ‘koche.’ Nyirinyiri is an important part of community traditions including marriage. 

For these reasons, songs celebrating livestock and the people who care for them are part of the region’s cultural heritage. Read More