Map - Balad District, Somalia (Balcad)

Bal'ad District (Degmada Balcad) is one of the districts of Middle Shabelle region of Somalia. It is located about 36 kilometers northeast of the capital city of Mogadishu. The district is an area of 4,400 square kilometres (1,700 sq miles) with an estimated population of 642,000 and 82 villages.

The district passes one of the Somalia's permanent rivers (Shabelle) which passes through the city of Bal-ad, nevertheless neighbours the Indian Ocean and has a long coast of about 70 km. The district is famous for agriculture, livestock and marine resources.

Bal'ad has one of the many nature reserves of the country which is located on the eastern bank of the Shabelle River, immediately south of the town. It has been established by the Somali Ecological Society in 1985, at which that time covered an area of 42 ha and later extended to 190 ha in 1987. The site consists of one of the few patches of riverine forest remaining on the Shabelle River and the surrounding scrub savannah.

The principal trees of the riverine forest include Acacia elatior, Ficus sycamorus, Garcinia livingstonei, Mimusops fruticosa and Tamarindus indica, while the surrounding scrub consists of more stunted Acacia nilotica with a dense undergrowth of herbs and tall grasses.

The reserve included a field-centre which, from 1985 to 1990, burning, cutting and grazing within the site was controlled and there were some signs of recovery of the forest and an increase in wildlife populations.