# Water Scarcity Op-Ed Describes Schemes, Not Project Records

> A Somaliland Sun op-ed names seawater greenhouse and sand-bank schemes but gives no project record, cost, contractor or follow-up after 2018.

- By: Editorial Team, Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com/about)
- Published: 30 September 2026
- Format: News story (reported from one named public source)
- Publication: Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com)
- Subject: Infrastructure and Services
- Tags: water-supply, utilities, project-management
- Web version: https://somaliconstructionreview.com/blog/somaliland-water-scarcity-op-ed-schemes

## Key points

- Somaliland Sun's 2018 piece on water scarcity was an op-ed by Jane Sandwood, not a project or official record.
- It describes seawater greenhouse schemes, sand banks near Arabsiyo and water-saving advice, without naming a project record, contractor or follow-up after 2018.

On 20 November 2018, Somaliland Sun reported on prize efforts to tackle water scarcity in a piece titled Somaliland: Country's Prize Efforts to Tackle Water Scarcity. The article is an op-ed, and its author, Jane Sandwood, is described by the publication as a regular contributor to somalilandsun.com. Somaliland Sun itself describes its outlet as the leading independent source for factual and timely news about Somaliland and the Horn of Africa, the publisher's own self-description.

As an op-ed it is not primary reporting or an official record, and nothing in it establishes what was built, funded or completed. It reports that Somaliland has been beset with water shortages due to a combination of geography, climate change and conflict in the wider area.

## What the piece described

Somaliland Sun reported that new schemes like the Seawater Greenhouse reduce irrigation water usage by 90% and have announced food harvests. The piece names no operator, location, date, contract, funder or water price for that scheme, and the claim sits in an op-ed, not a project record.

Near Arabsiyo, Somaliland Sun reported, locals have built sand banks that hide water beneath thin layers of sand to protect it from the sun. Somaliland Sun also reported, without naming who counted, that projects of this nature have provided water for 42,000 people. That figure carries no responsible party, date or indication of whether it is design capacity or served population, and no confirmation that it covers the Arabsiyo sand banks specifically.

The op-ed cites unidentified researchers for the claim that a leaking tap can lose 3,000 gallons of water per year. It reports that in nearby Kenya citizens were advised to save water through mindful usage, without naming the advising authority, and that in Ireland scientists have looked into harnessing storm power after Storm Ophelia. Neither item concerns Somali construction.

Somaliland Sun's photo caption states that donkeys are still used to supply water in major cities of Somaliland including the capital Hargeisa; no date or source is given for that observation. The op-ed also forecasts, under its own attribution, that floating turbines could in future capture storm power and produce energy and clean water via desalination. Somaliland Sun reported that storms in Somaliland can deliver an entire year's worth of rainfall in a day; no meteorological source or measurement is given for that assertion.

## What is not established

The article does not say whether any of the schemes it announces were built, by whom, at what cost, or when. It gives no updated official data on water access after that date. Its page also carries later-dated sidebar items, including one dated 09/21/2026, which reflect a live template rather than the 2018 article. Nothing in the article shows that Somaliland's water scarcity was solved, reduced or addressed since 2018.

## Sources

- [Somaliland: Country's Prize Efforts to Tackle Water Scarcity](https://somalilandsun.com/somaliland-countrys-prize-efforts-to-tackle-water-scarcity/) — Somaliland Sun, 2018-11-20