Firstly, Somalia is not a barren desert , it's actually just shrubs/grasslands, savannas, rain forests and tropical woodlands. It has a very diverse landscape. Spoke about it a bit here and Somalia's wild life is even more diverse than Kenya's
The purple coloured areas in the Somali peninsula are called the Somali acaci–commiphora bushlands and thickets. It's an ecoregion mostly made up of semi-arid tropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands.
So it is rich in woodlands and vegetation throughout.
Kismayo is a perfect example because it was originally a coastal fishing village inhabited by Garre-Tunni-Bajun that was transformed into a trading port founded by Harti-Majerteen traders in the 19th century and it's connected to the production of the fertile Waamo region i Juba Hose
Most Somalis were engaged in mixed economic activities were either sailors/fishermen on the coast , townsmen/merchants in the cities and were farmers and pastoralists, carravaners and also lived spread across different trading networks and small towns, villages until the 20th century.
Secondly you can tell it's a Kenyan that wrote that. I can tell that because they type the same rabid stuff about Somalia under every comment sections on social media. My guess it's some type of inferiority complex.
Kenya is where foreigners set up enclaves on the coast and slave raided the pagan tribes he descended from that lived in the interior. If he wants delude himself to think that's an empire, he can go right ahead.
They got colonized without much resistance, so much for warrior culture. Then graduated into to a country who's whole economy is ran by Indians, arabs , whites and Somalis while the rest of them live in slums like Kibera and Mathare.