Marlboro,
Erigavo is not a desert. It has better climate and water resources than Mogadishu. The Italians lied to the Hawiye and the Hawiye thought just because its next to an ocean it must not be a desert. Let's be realistic here. It was just yesterday when 250,000 Southern Somalis perished due to hunger and thirst. Where were Mogadishu, Marka, Barawe and Kismayo? How many died in this northern 'desert'?
The notion that the south has more water is misleading. Let's be honest about that one. It has two following rivers but both rivers' source birth are in Ethiopia and Ethiopia has already dammed one and plans to build more dams eventually blocking that flow of water...and diverting to its arid land.
What secessionist in the north don't even know is that they sit on the biggest lake of water in any Somali region but they are too busy crying instead of harnessing Somalia's channels and venue of access to tap such resources. If leading international water companies came to them and said we will drill these water for you in the name of Somali Republic, they will reject and instead die of thirst. They are very stubborn, arrogant and largely inflexible people.
Here is a
NASA photo showing the underground water of Africa...see Erigavo is blessed with a huge lake of fresh underground water that can sustain this city for thousands of years and by then we will learn to harness the saline water (sodium chloride).
As you can see from the figure, that lake is almost as big as North Somalia itself and has the potential to produce 5-20 liters per second. The two rivers that will dry up in the future don't even flow at that rate.
Since I was in high school I always thought of way of solving water issues in the north.
As well as water, economic and social advantages over Mogadishu in the long term, the city is also much much secure than Mogadishu. It is slightly far away from the ocean which means foreign naval forces will not make an easy landing like the Delta Forces of 1993, Italians, Portuguese, Arab and Persian invaders.
This also means far from Tsunami and future typhoons as climate change takes full effect.
Most of Mogadishu will erode and will be swallowed by the sea in the future. The sand is already eating the city alive.
Erigavo has huge mountains that can provide emergency underground bunkers and shield against foreign enemies.
All in all, one day Somalis will see what I see.
I present you with the future.......Erigavo.
And this is me riding the victory horse hehehehe (just for fun)...
read ibn battutas visit to Mogadishu! 
great city of joy, holy city and the White Pearl of indian ocean 
i always thought they were lying when they said that they found water instead of oil in Puntland look near Garowe 
