Investigative Reports

Security Reform vs. Security Risk: Weighing the Implications of Somaliland’s Military Biometric System

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Key Points Somaliland's biometric registration of security personnel aims to...

The Diplomacy of Gullibility: How Somaliland’s Foreign Ministry Keeps Falling for International Fraudsters

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In what has become a familiar scene in Somaliland's...

Ex-US Ambassador to Somalia Lobbies for Hormuud’s Access to American Banking System

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Questions mount as André partners with Somali MP who...
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COVID-19 VACCINES AND CORRUPTION RISKS: PREVENTING CORRUPTION IN THE ALLOCATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF VACCINES

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Staff
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With a fast-moving pandemic, no one is safe, unless everyone is safe Covid-19 Vaccine Transparency matters.

The global pandemic has already caused the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives and disrupted the lives of billions more. As well as reducing the tragic loss of life and helping to get the pandemic under control, the introduction of a vaccine will prevent the loss of US$ 375 billion to the global economy every month. Global equitable access to a vaccine, particularly protecting health care workers and those most-at-risk is the only way to mitigate the public health and economic impact of the pandemic.

Are there National Deployment and Vaccination Plan for COVID 19 Vaccines?

Does some countries has COVID-19 Vaccine National Coordinating Committee?

Do poor and developing countries utilize the free global equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines in a suitable Manner?

With COVID-19 vaccines being approved for use in different parts of the globe, the scale and complexity of their manufacture, allocation, and distribution globally will be unprecedented. This will also present corruption risks that may threaten vital public health goals. These risks include the entry of substandard and falsified vaccines into markets, theft of vaccines within the distribution systems, leakages in emergency funding designated for the development and distribution of vaccines, nepotism, favoritism, and corrupted procurement systems. These corruption risks must be identified and mitigated by public institutions to help advance access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines by the population, including the most vulnerable and marginalized groups.

The United Nations Convention against Corruption provides a solid global framework for these efforts

BACKGROUND

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of a new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) a pandemic on 11 March 2020.

Since then, the pandemic continues to rage, and morbidity and mortality rates continue to climb globally. This illuminates the urgency of developing and ensuring access to affordable, safe, and efficacious vaccines, and their rapid and fair deployment. The positive results announced by a number of vaccine candidates in

November 2020 have led to vaccines being approved at record speed in different parts of the world. A critical response will be required by governments to ensure access of their populations to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines. Many governments have indicated that they aim to set up COVID-19 vaccine programmes that will cover their entire populations. The scale and complexity of the allocation, distribution and prioritization of the vaccines will therefore be unprecedented.

CORRUPTION RISKS

Vaccine deployment and weak or non-existent distribution systems.

The successful implementation of COVID-19 vaccination programmes will require robust supply systems. Such systems will need to ensure effective vaccine storage, handling, and stock management; rigorous temperature controls in the supply chain; and the maintenance of adequate logistics management information systems. This is vital to safeguard the COVID-19 vaccine supply and prevent any interruptions from the point of manufacturing through to service delivery.

There are corruption risks throughout the entire vaccine deployment process. As an example, vaccines may be stolen from the public supply chain during the transportation process and diverted to the black market or kept for personal use. Vaccine supplies are also at risk once they reach the hospital or public health facility administering the vaccinations if there are no reliable oversight measures in place. Public health facility staff may also steal vaccines for resale in the black market or in their own private practices. This risk is particularly pronounced when supplies are limited, and demand is high, as is the case during a pandemic.

Limited vaccine supplies may also incentivize those who have the financial resources to bribe health professionals to secure a vaccine for themselves and/or their families. Some health professionals may also demand payoffs from patients to access COVID-19 vaccines, a practice that will be particularly harmful to poor, marginalized, and vulnerable groups

Covid-19 Vaccine Transparency matters.

Citations:

COVID-19 VACCINES AND CORRUPTION RISKS: PREVENTING CORRUPTION IN THE MANUFACTURE,
ALLOCATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF VACCINES

COVID-19 VACCINE TRANSPARENCY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Essa Abdi Djam. MD, Masters in Global health and pursuing a diploma in tropical medicine. He has extensive experience working in a disrupted health system, Communicable diseases, Nutrition, Covid-19 emergency responses, and HIV and Tuberculosis burden countries in Africa, the middle east, central Asia, and the southern pacific. Currently working in the Middle East as a senior medical officer of humanitarian responses.  Dr. Essa is currently based in Jordan. He can be reached on his Professional LinkedIn account and dressajama@gmail.com 

Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the opinions, viewpoints of the Somaliland Chronicle, and its staff. 

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Notice: This is an article by Somaliland Chronicle and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Under this license, all reprints and non-commercial distribution of this work is permitted.

Interested in vaccine rollouts across Africa? Here’s a map to guide you

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Staff
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Benjamin Kagina, University of Cape Town

Most developed countries are in the advanced stages of COVID-19 vaccination rollouts. But a large number of developing countries, including most across Africa, are still at the early stages, mainly due to a shortage of shots.

African countries are trying to overcome the shortfall by using a multi-pronged approach to secure vaccines. This includes sourcing them through:

  • the COVAX facility. This is a global initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines. It’s led by global health organisations including Gavi, the vaccine alliance, the World Health Organisation, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations;
  • the COVID-19 African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team, which was established by the African Union;
  • bilateral agreements with the manufacturers, and
  • donations from other countries.

To help you keep track of the progress of COVID-19 vaccine rollouts in African countries, we have developed a map that will be updated daily, showing how many people have been vaccinated across the continent.

Benjamin Kagina, Senior Research Officer, Vaccines For Africa Initiative, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.

Analysis of the Long-Term Negative Impacts of The Active involvement of Tribal Elders in The Parliamentarians Selection Process With The Absence of Political Parties Constitutional Role

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Staff
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Somaliland had experienced sustained peace, growing Democracy, and fruitful conflict resolution among Somaliland tribes to maintain unity. Furthermore, Somaliland held free and fair presidential, parliamentary, and local council elections and voted for the constitution, which received 97 percent approval to become an independent state in 2002.

Since the Somaliland political parties agreed on the parliamentary and council elections in 2020, many Somalilanders, including politicians, diaspora, civil servants,  and businessmen and women, have shown their interest in becoming candidates for the upcoming planned elections on May 31st, 2021. However, the parliamentarians’ flawed selection process due to tribal elders’ influence in the candidates’ selection process; most of the following Somaliland candidates for Parliament/Representatives do not possess prior expertise in legislation or worked in government sectors.

Therefore, if such an imperfect selection process that excluded women of public and political figures, i.e., Suad Armiye, continues and political parties neglect to choose the future Parliamentarians who have no experience and academic knowledge regarding public-law, politics, or international law. Political analysts forecast the likelihood of having the lowest quality parliamentarians ever elected due to the clan-based selection process that limited elite society, including educated men and women in Somaliland; thus, our upcoming parliamentarians will not serve the state.

Filling the house of Parliament with illiterates who have mostly passed the national examination board office’s screening process with fake certificates or backed up by the government will affect our legislative system in the long run. The qualification required from the Somaliland Parliament candidates is having a secondary school certificate or equivalent, as written in article 15 of conditions relating to House of Somaliland Representatives Election Law.[1]

Nonetheless, hundreds of losers were motivated to run for the legislature by tribal elders and the secondary or equivalent qualification. Simultaneously, putting a burden on those who were qualified or had previous working experience in law and related fields due to their lack of knowledge of the tribal influence in Somaliland politics or have insufficient funds to self-finance their campaigns.

In other words, the three political parties of Kulmiye, UCID, and Waddani favor those candidates promoted or unanimously agreed on by their tribes; because of fear of losing the majority of the tribal and ethnic clan votes if they nominate those candidates not approved by the tribal elders. It is worth mentioning that almost 70% or over of the running candidates do not qualify to hold such senior legislature positions due to having no understanding of what being a parliamentarian means.

The Somaliland constitution includes a principle of parliamentary sovereignty. It establishes Parliament as the supreme legal authority in Somaliland to make or repeal any law. A democratic parliament has several tasks to do; inside the house of Somaliland parliament. These include representing states, examine and criticize the evil work of the government (scrutiny), create and amend laws (legislation), debate the most pressing issues of the day (debating), and analyze and disapprove/approve the government’s spending (budget/taxes).

In Somaliland’s case of the upcoming Parliamentary elections, few candidates are competent enough to serve the nation and fulfill these roles mentioned above. Yet, most of the candidates running for these senior legislative positions lack or have misunderstood their roles.

The current Parliamentarians, whose term ended after sitting for the past fifteen years since 2005, had neither monitored nor accounted for the government’s unconstitutional acts during these fifteen years. Kulmiye government had signed unconstitutional agreements with external inventors, including DP World of Dubai and the United Arab Emirates, whereby no official agreements availed to the representatives to comment, review, disapprove or approve it.[2]

Government officials have frequently harassed journalists, opposition figures, and other government critics. Additionally, due to the retaliation of their activities, several journalists and opposition activists have been briefly detained since 2009. The brutal acts and violations of human rights happened due to the passive role of the Parliament elected in 2005. [3]

Moreover, the long-sitting parliamentarians were reluctant to pass the replacing representatives’ election law. As a result, a disenfranchised generation with zero hope to elect their representative became a national issue threatening Somaliland youth. DW TV of Germany interviewed Somaliland youth who reported the concerns youth have over delayed parliamentary elections said:

“We are having a whole generation unable to elect their representatives because everyone who is under the age of 30 was not eligible to vote in 2005 when our parliament was elected,” says Guleid Ahmed Jama, a lawyer, and political analyst. “There is a detachment between the elected officials and the majority of the people in the city, who are suffering because of unemployment and other social issues.”[4]

The worst-case scenarios of the outgoing representatives were; they were not committed to check and balance the Executive Part of the government, but they merged themselves in the ruling party of Kulmiye. Representatives were mainly involved in dirty games of corruption, seeking government projects, and asking for a bribe in every Parliamentary motion to approve government fiscal policies, annual budget, and foreign agreements regarding mining and investment.

Notably, the President and Ministries of Kulmiye Party were not accountable in practical to the sitting Parliament for a long time. Due to this, very few legislations or laws were drafted or passed. Simultaneously, the unconstitutional government acts and taxpayer money’s corruption and unfair distribution remained to continue throughout the country because of the government’s Executive and legislative parts’ unlawful mix-up.[5]

Three political parties rule Somaliland, which is limited by the constitution to discourage clan-based and sub-clan parties and competition, which have previously caused tensions. However, such alliances continue to play an essential role in the region’s politics.[6] 

As experienced, clan elders are the kingmakers in Somaliland politics. Continuation of such clan-based politics will not only disable the country’s Democracy. Yet, it will negatively affect building a democratic state with an independent legislative system in the house of Parliament.

In a nutshell, the current representatives’ selection process will exclude capable women from the Parliament because of the gender gap and inequality. It will be a challenge to those elites, intellectuals, and politicians who are dreaming of democratizing Somaliland by creating an accountable and transparent environment for the three government components of the Executive, Parliament, and Judiciary.

[1] House of Representatives Election Law – Law No. 20-2/2005 – 2005

[2] Somaliland Parliament refuses DP World agreement on Berbera Port

[3] “Hostages to Peace” Threats to Human Rights and Democracy in Somaliland

[4] Somaliland is on a rocky political path

[5] Mohamud Hashi: The money-grubbing moron who fleeced Somaliland Civil Aviation Department

[6] Clan-based politics: Somaliland is on a rocky political path

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Khalid S. Dirir is a Political Analyst and holds MSc & Med in Development Studies and Advanced Education London, UK

Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the opinions, viewpoints of the Somaliland Chronicle, and its staff. 

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Notice: This is an article by Somaliland Chronicle and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Under this license, all reprints and non-commercial distribution of this work is permitted.

Dangerously Unregulated: How SOMTEL’s IPO Raises More Questions than Answers

By
Staff
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Dahabshiil Group, one of the largest companies in Somaliland, has gone public with its wholly owned telecommunications company and of the second-largest telecommunication firm in Somaliland SOMTEL. SOMTEL is following in the footsteps of its competitor, Telesom which has offered shares to a few investors many years ago where its stock has reportedly appreciated significantly.

The initial public offering of SOMTEL in Somaliland is a continuation of Dahabshiil Group’s effort to offer shares to the public that started in Somalia in 2018. At the annual investor meeting that was held in Mogadishu concurrently with the Somaliland event, the company has opened a second round of investment in SOMTEL for the public in Somalia.

In the well-attended IPO event of SOMTEL in Hargeisa, Somaliland, the company founder, Mr. Mohamed Saeed Dualeh spoke of how he held off taking the company public and that now was the right time to offer the public an investment opportunity.

The President of the Republic of Somaliland as well as much of his cabinet and the leaders of the opposition parties attended the ceremony where they all offered words of encouragement and appreciation for the Dahabshiil Group and particularly the founder, Mr. Mohamed Saeed Dualeh. In addition, the President reiterated Somaliland’s commitment to free trade and enterprise and described the role of the government as a simple traffic cop.

The investment ecosystem and the laws that govern it in Somaliland, although complete, have not been passed by Parliament and are not in effect yet and that puts both investors and companies at risk and with Dahabshiil Group and its public offering of SOMTEL shares, brings up more questions than answers about the company and shares.

In many countries, once a company goes public its shares are considered a financial instrument and are subject to strict regulation and financial regulator such as the US’s Securities and Exchange Commission have significant oversight and require companies to meet basic criteria’s before taking a company public and these include the availability of detailed financial information about the company such as valuation, how many shares the company intends to sell, Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) and more.

With Dahabshiil Group’s IPO of its SOMTEL company, the investors have not been provided any information about the company such as the valuation or financial health including debt and exactly how many shares the company will sell to the public and who will maintain a controlling share of SOMTEL.

Valuation

What is the Intrinsic Value of a SOMTEL Stock?

According to SOMTEL Somaliland Shares, a website set up by Dahabshiil Group, the price of one share of SOMTEL is 100 US dollars and the minimum number of shares an investor can buy are 20 while the maximum is 1000 shares. 

One of the biggest unanswered questions about the SOMTEL IPO is the valuation of the SOMTEL company or how much the company is worth and without this basic financial information, investors are at a major disadvantage and their ability to make an informed decision if the stock is indeed worth 100 US dollars is severely compromised.

What makes a company valuable or worthless is its financial health, profit, and loss statement and well as its market share of Somaliland telecommunication market, the latter which SOMTEL has been struggling against its much larger competitor TELESOM.

Number of Shares

How many Shares of SOMTEL is Dahabshiil Selling?

Knowing the number of shares answers an important question for a public company and that is who controls the company which is generally the majority stockholder. How many shares Dahabshiil Group is willing to sell to the public is even more pertinent since it has been offering shares in Mogadishu since November 2018 and has just begun doing so in Somaliland. Without sharing this very basic information, the company may be able to sell an unlimited number of shares and may have, in essence, got a license to print money. Simply put, offering shares of SOMTEL may be more lucrative for Dahabshiil Group than the company is worth.

In a more basic sense, the number of shares being offered is how investors would know exactly what percent of the company they own. Without the regulation that compels a company to reveal financial data as well as the number of shares or percent being offered to the public, nothing stops Dahabshiil or any other company from selling an infinite number of shares.

20% Service Charge

Is Dahabshiil Charging its Investors to Operate SOMTEL?

In the limited information published on SOMTEL Somaliland Shares, there is an odd clause that states 20% will be the company’s service charge, which means Dahabshiil is charging 20 US dollars for each share sold. This is confirmed by multiple investors who have purchased shares of SOMTEL shares.

What makes this 20% service fee odd if not outright predatory is the fact that an investor regardless of how many shares of the company they own is sharing the risk, potential gain, the operating cost, and the holding company or operator does not charge them a separate fee to run the company for them. Unless Dahabshiil Group is selling 100% of SOMTEL to the public and that brings up more dilemmas for the investors.

In other words, Facebook does not charge a service fee to purchase its stocks, but a stockbroker would charge a one-time transaction fee or a commission, usually around 10 US dollars regardless of the size of the transaction

20% service charge proceeds for 100k, 200k and 300k shares sold.

The owners of Dahabshiil Group have worked in many international markets and are aware of how stocks work outside of Somaliland’s embryonic investment ecosystem and that companies do not charge their investors a 20% premium to own their stock. In the case of Somaliland where stock brokerage services do not exist yet, Dahabshiil Group will be the custodian of the shares it is has sold to the public.

Sample US brokerage house service and transaction fees.

There are many ways of looking at the 20% service fee Dahabshiil Group is charging SOMTEL investors but the one that concerns the investors the most is that they are taking a 20% loss just for the privilege of owning SOMTEL stocks.

Dahabshiil Group did not respond to our questions below for this report

  1. How many shares are being offered to the public?
  2. What is the current valuation of SOMTEL?
  3. What is the Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) of SOMTEL? 
  4. The limited literature published on https://somtelsomalilandshares.com/ points to a 20% service fee. Is this a 20% fee per share of $100 and could you provide more information on the 20% service charge.
  5. What is the current market share of SOMTEL in both internet and mobile phone in the Somaliland market?

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Notice: This is an article by Somaliland Chronicle. It is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Under this license, all reprints and non-commercial distribution of this work are permitted.

Training government officials in Cybersecurity in Somaliland is a remarkable move

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Staff
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Dr Jama Musse Jama, PhD, Hargeysa Cultural Centre, @JamaMusse

I attended the launch of the cybersecurity training program for 35 government officials, responsible IT departments of the Republic of Somaliland ministries, and other government institutions. The team will be trained for 10 days at the University of Hargeysa by the UK-based Protection Group International (PGI), a cybersecurity specialized firm worked with over 50 countries worldwide including 21 African countries. The project is supported by the UK Government and implemented by the Somaliland Ministry of Information and Communication Technology.

National Cybersecurity is a plan that requires a set of practices, tools, infrastructure, and most importantly qualified human resources specifically trained for the purpose. In contemporary times, every government needs to invest in securing its vital data as a nation as well as the data and identity of each and every one of its citizens. This requires an internal technical capacity building at the government level, but also developing rules and regulations to govern the IT security.

Numbers speak by themselves: over 26.6 billion devices active and connected to the Internet of Things in the year 2019, growing to 31 billion in 2020, and the projected numbers are impressive: 50 billion devices will be active and connected by 2030. This will shape the concept of security in technology, and of course, will create huge loopholes in the stability of the systems, but on the other hand, cybersecurity will create jobs, and Somaliland needs to get its share in this market for its young people and train them for this opportunity beforehand. The training launched today in Hargeysa, despite for now only for the government officials, is a remarkable move towards the modernization of the country.

National security, including cybersecurity, is a high-level top-down approach and the Somaliland government needs to build its own internal capacity in order to be able to protect the national assets (data) and keep its integrity, and foster a culture of security in its citizens. This of course can happen with a long-term national strategy for cybersecurity. That strategy should focus on producing qualified personnel and promoting cybersecurity education at every level of the national educational system. Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Dr. Abdiweli Abdillahi Soufi believes Somaliland is already in the process of implementing the national strategy launched last year, and he considers investing in human resources is what makes the strategy implementable. Addressing the trainees, he says “you are selected from your ministry to be the expert in cybersecurity for the government and represent in a way our ministry as qualified personnel who will act as the trainer of the future trainees. Providing you with a certification in your expertise is not to just give you a title, but to equip you with a tangible way to transfer the knowledge from outside and disseminate it inside of the country.”

The government needs to set the direction, define a localized regulatory framework and laws that govern the security, but delivering cybersecurity requires everyone to play their role – particularly big business, but also citizens. Therefore, along with the capacity building at the executive level, raising awareness among the citizens and mainly among the young generation will be a priority.

There are people that belief cyber might not a priority in Somaliland, but a country that is being built from the ground out has a unique opportunity to build the foundations right from the start rather than retrofit on old systems like the developed countries. Head of the UK Representative Office in Hargeysa, Stuart Brown highlighted the opportunity for Somaliland to become a frontrunner in the fourth-generation industrial revolution. “It may be a cliche, but in an interconnected world cybersecurity is a global challenge: your security is our security. As Somaliland builds its own e-Gov and digital ecosystems there is an opportunity to adopt an approach that is secure by design – a luxury we don’t have in the UK. This will increase trust in government platforms that one day could deliver public services digitally to all corners of Somaliland. It will also help increase investor confidence and create an environment conducive to developing homegrown talent, which in turn will be key to unlocking Somaliland’s potential to become a regional leader in the digital sector” says Mr. Brown.

Sebastian Madden, Chief Corporate Development Officer at PGI sees both challenges and opportunities in developing the strong cybersecurity apparatus required to enable digital strategies in Africa. He praises Somaliland’s decision to develop self-sustaining national capability through this programme. Mr. Madden says: “The global shortage of cybersecurity skills means countries are struggling to recruit, retain and afford the people they need to mitigate the cybersecurity risks to their programmes. PGI has therefore specialised in helping countries develop the cybersecurity training capabilities they need to develop their own security professionals. The skills we are teaching over the next ten days are the key foundations on which all cybersecurity careers are built. And the Ministry of ICT’s decision to train trainers alongside the staff receiving the training programme will give Somaliland the ability to deliver these courses itself to future generations of security professionals.”

The defense system of the nation needs to be responsive to the new attacks, which may not necessarily happen indirect attack to damage the data but by having access to unauthorized content and misusing it for own advantage. This will require a defense system of protecting these contents against those attackers. I would have loved to hear today here the voice of the ministry of defense as well because the cybersecurity issues had an impact also on the military and other defense apparatus.

Finally, cybersecurity comes with new forms of crimes, and there is a need for a new vision in terms of regulatory framework, laws, and procedures to handle it. Every level of security and safety apparatus needs to improve, including the investigation department. The Minister mentioned the draft of the law governing the ICT, including cybersecurity and cybercrimes is ready and in its final reading. This is certainly good news.

I am happy to see the Somaliland Government is taking the lead in the region in all these elements I have mentioned. Congratulation to the entire Ministry team, and I appreciate to testimony that, with the support of UKAID, things are moving in the right direction.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Jama Musse Jama has a Ph.D. in Computational Linguistics and has extensive research publications in mathematics, ICT, and the role of art and culture in development. Founder of the Hargeysa International Book Fair, and currently Director of the Hargeysa Cultural Centre in Somaliland, Dr. Jama has also a Senior Research Associate position at DPU, University College London, UK. He occasionally writes on Somaliland Chronicle in a personal capacity, and he can be reached on Twitter @JamaMusse.

Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the opinions, viewpoints of the Somaliland Chronicle, and its staff. 

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Notice: This is an article by Somaliland Chronicle and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Under this license, all reprints and non-commercial distribution of this work is permitted.

Breaking – Somaliland Received 65,000 Single Doses of AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine through COVAX

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Staff
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According to sources from the Ministry of Health Development, the 65,000 vaccines received yesterday by the government of Somaliland are only one of the two recommended doses of the vaccine. As recommended by the vaccine manufacturer AstraZeneca and the World Health Organization, the second dose that should be administered within 8 to 12 weeks is not included in the received shipment of AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine through COVAX.

Somaliland government officials who spoke on condition of anonymity did know why only one of the recommended doses were shipped but were hopeful that the issue would be remedied within 8 to 12 weeks and added that Somaliland is looking to other sources of vaccine beyond the COVAX program.

Although not directly linked, many countries have paused the use of the AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine after a small number of recipients have experienced blood clots, some of them fatal.

The President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi, addressing an initial public offering of Dahabshiil Group spoke of the COVID-19 pandemic and the vaccine and stated that vaccination is entirely voluntary and that he will be the first one to take it when its administration starts on Saturday.

It is unclear if President Bihi is aware that the vaccines Somaliland has received through the COVAX program are only one of the two recommended doses and it is also unclear if Somaliland will be getting the second dose of AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine within the recommended period.

An official who spoke on the matter of this particular vaccine and the fact that many countries have paused its use stated that most medications have side effects and the risk of COVID-19 infection outweighs concerns of potential side effects.

COVID-19 infections have been surging in Somaliland lately and no new government efforts have been announced to curb the spread of the virus. Two days ago the Vice President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Abdirahman Ismail Saylici announced that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and has been struggling with it the last three days. Other officials including the Minister of Finance Development Dr. Sa’ad Ali Shire and the Deputy Minister of Health Hon Mahdi Osman Buri were reported to have also tested positive for COVID.

MSF – People left with few healthcare options in Tigray as facilities looted, destroyed

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Staff
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Press Release

  • Violence in Ethiopia’s Tigray region has extended to attacks on health facilities, with barely one in 10 functioning.
  • Of the 106 health facilities MSF teams visited, one in five had been or was occupied by armed soldiers; one facility is being used as an army base.
  • The damaged, looted facilities and resulting lack of medical staff means people in the region have very little access to healthcare.
  • MSF urges all armed groups in the area to respect medical facilities and for services to be restored as soon as possible.

ADDIS ABABA – Health facilities across Ethiopia’s Tigray region have been looted, vandalised and destroyed in a deliberate and widespread attack on healthcare, according to teams from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Of 106 health facilities visited by MSF teams between mid-December 2020 and early March 2021, nearly 70% had been looted, and more than 30% had been damaged; just 13% were functioning normally.

In some health facilities across Tigray, the looting of health facilities continues, according to MSF teams. While some looting may have been opportunistic, health facilities in most areas appear to have been deliberately vandalised to make them non-functional.  In many health centres, such as in Debre Abay and May Kuhli in North-West Tigray, teams found destroyed equipment, smashed doors and windows, and medicine and patient files scattered across floors.

In Adwa hospital in central Tigray, medical equipment, including ultrasound machines and monitors, had been deliberately smashed. In the same region, the health facility in Semema was reportedly looted twice by soldiers before being set on fire, while the health centre in Sebeya was hit by rockets, destroying the delivery room.

MSF teams recently visited 106 medical facilities across Tigray region, Ethiopia. Of the facilities visited:

Hospitals occupied by soldiers

Every fifth health facility visited by MSF teams was occupied by soldiers. In some instances, this was temporary; in others the armed occupation continues. In Mugulat in east Tigray, Eritrean soldiers are still using the health facility as their base. The hospital in Abiy Addi in central Tigray, which serves a population of half a million, was occupied by Ethiopian forces until early March.

“The army used Abiy Addi hospital as a military base and to stabilise their injured soldiers,” says Kate Nolan, MSF emergency coordinator. “During that time, it was not accessible to the general population.”

Health facilities and health staff need to be protected during a conflict, in accordance with international humanitarian law. This is clearly not happening in Tigray.
OLIVER BEHN, MSF GENERAL DIRECTOR
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Ambulances seized

Few health facilities in Tigray now have ambulances, as most have been seized by armed groups. In and around the city of Adigrat in east Tigray, for example, some 20 ambulances were taken from the hospital and nearby health centres.

Later, MSF teams saw some of these vehicles being used by soldiers near the Eritrean border, to transport goods. As a result, the referral system in Tigray for transporting sick patients is almost non-existent. Patients travel long distances, sometimes walking for days, to reach essential health services.

Many health facilities have few – or no – remaining staff. Some have fled in fear; others no longer come to work because they have not been paid in months.

Devastating impact on people

“The attacks on Tigray’s health facilities are having a devastating impact on people,” says Oliver Behn, MSF general director. “Health facilities and health staff need to be protected during a conflict, in accordance with international humanitarian law. This is clearly not happening in Tigray.”

Before the conflict began in November 2020, Tigray had one of the best health systems in Ethiopia, with health posts in villages, health centres and hospitals in towns, and a functioning referral system with ambulances transporting sick patients to hospital. This health system has now almost completely collapsed.ATTACKS ON MEDICAL FACILITIES IN TIGRAY

MSF staff conducting mobile clinics in rural areas of Tigray hear of women who have died in childbirth, because they were unable to get to a hospital due to the lack of ambulances, rampant insecurity on the roads and a night-time curfew. Meanwhile, many women are giving birth in unhygienic conditions in informal displacement camps.

In the past four months, few pregnant women have received antenatal or postnatal care, and children have gone unvaccinated, raising the risk of future outbreaks of infectious diseases. Patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and HIV, as well as psychiatric patients, are going without lifesaving drugs. Victims of sexual violence are often unable to get medical and psychological care.

“The health system needs to be restored as soon as possible,” says Behn. “Health facilities need to be rehabilitated and receive more supplies and ambulances, and staff need to receive salaries and the opportunity to work in a safe environment. Most importantly, all armed groups in this conflict need to respect and protect health facilities and medical staff.”

MSF teams are rehabilitating a number of health facilities across the region and providing them with drugs and other medical supplies, as well as providing hands-on medical support in emergency rooms, maternity wards and outpatient departments. MSF teams are also running mobile clinics in rural towns and villages where the health system is not functioning, and in informal sites where displaced people are staying. However, there are still rural areas in Tigray that neither MSF, nor any other organisation, has been able to reach; MSF can only assume that people living in these areas are also without access to healthcare. 

President Muse Bihi Abdi’s Job Performance Review Poll

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Staff
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Evaluate Your President

The President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi has been in office for more than three years and it is important that the public has a way of evaluating their elected leaders, today, we are conducting our second poll to gauge the public opinion on the performance of President Muse Bihi Abdi and his Administration. 

Voting is open until midnight March 26th and will publish the results as soon as it closes. Remember to scroll down to answer all questions.

President Bihi Welcomes the United Arab Emirates Ambassador to Somaliland

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Staff
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The President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi has accepted the credentials of the United Arab Emirates Ambassador to Somaliland. This is according to a statement released by the Presidency this afternoon. Ambassador Abdulla Alnaqbi would be the first official emissary of the United Arab Emirates to the Republic of Somaliland since its independence in 1991.

President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi [left] with Ambassador of the UAE Alqanbi

According to the statement from the Presidency, Ambassador Alqanbi has extended greetings from the government of the United Arab Emirates to President Bihi.

The United Arab Emirates has been the largest direct foreign investor in Somaliland via Dubai DP World Port’s 450 million US dollar Berbera port expansion and management deal signed between the two countries many years ago.

The United Arab Emirates has been the latest Villa Somalia target for harassment following its statement on Somalia’s failed elections and referring to Mr. Mohamed Abdillahi Farmajo as interim President. Somalia has also in the past lodged numerous protests against the UAE especially following the signing of Berbera DP World Port deal. It is unclear if any of Somalia’s diplomatic belligerence has prompted the UAE to tacitly recognize Somaliland and send Ambassador Alqanbi.

Under President Bihi, Somaliland has enjoyed a string of diplomatic successes starting with the establishment of bilateral ties with Taiwan last year.

Minister of Education Rebukes and Threatens Legal Action against Privately-Owned Schools and Students following Riots

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Following back-to-back student riots at two of the largest privately-owned schools in Hargeisa, Nuradin Boys’ School and Salama private schools, the Minister of Education and Science Hon. Ahmed Mohamed Diriye Egeh has rebuked and issued a stern warning to the privately-owned schools to immediately implement COVID-19 directives and to stop forcing students to purchase books and school lunches from them among other issues.

The student riot at Salaama private school was disbursed by police and government response to the incident was swift where many officials have been onsite and updated the public and the media. This follows another riot a week prior at Nuradin school that has caused major property damage to the school. No death or injuries were reported on either incident.

Although the reason for the riot at Salama school was not immediately known, the prior incident on March 3rd at Nuradin school follows the dismissal of a student who posted a complaint on social media about the school’s business practices including an allegation that the school is openly violating COVID-19 prevention directives and that students are prohibited from purchasing anything including lunch from outside the school.

The Minister of Education and Science Hon. Ahmed Mohamed Diriye Egeh stated that violation of COVID-19 prevention directives would no longer be tolerated and would result in the immediate revocation of their operating license.

Before the news of yesterday’s riot at Salaama school, a committee tasked with investigating the incident at Nuradin has issued a report recommending that include the prohibition of charging students any fees except the monthly fees and that students can purchase textbooks anywhere they wish and that Nuradin school should immediately stop selling textbooks.

The recommendation of the committee seems to vindicate points raised by the student that posted the complaint against Nuradin on social that reported sparked the riot.

In the press briefing, the Minister of Education and Science Hon. Ahmed Mohamed Diriye Egeh said “Any school caught with more than 45 students sitting in a class and not adhering to the ministry’s directive for social distances their licenses will be revoked within the hour. The time for tolerance and grace period is over.”. He added that in addition to the revocation of the operating license the government will prosecute violators to the fullest extent of the law.

Speaking on the additional fees the students have alleged the private schools assess, the minister states that it is against the law to charge students any fees except the monthly fee as part of the directives of the COVID-19 prevention.

The minister also spoke on the other allegation that students are forced to purchase textbooks, lunches, and anything they may need from the school itself and are unable to do so on the open market and asked rhetorically if the school owners consider the pupils to be their property and said students are free to purchase books and lunches from anywhere they want.

The minister who seemed livid mentioned that the owners of private schools may be colluding on WhatsApp groups and added that the government will recognize them as a criminal element waging a war against the government and that the government knows how to deal with that.

Continuing his speech, the minister called upon privately-owned schools to work with the ministry and stated that they should not think they not equal to the government and that no one is above the law.

To the students, the minister said that they can register their grievances with the ministry and warned them of slandering their schools on social media, and stated that libel is a criminal offense in Somaliland.

“If someone is charging you a fee they shouldn’t or is forcing you to purchase textbooks from the school or school lunch can be only purchased from the school-owned cafeteria, or you think you have been suspended unfairly, you can file a complaint to our call center at 9666, this line can be called from all telecom companies that operate in Somaliland. But any student that says I will not file a complaint but would rather take the law into their hands. They will be caught with an iron fist and steps will be taken against them” said Minister Diriye.

“This is the second riot in 10 days, and steps will be taken against anyone who participated even if they broke a small window as they have destroyed a property that belongs to Somaliland” he said.

Minister Diriye stated that it is thought or even suspected that the rioters may be trying to destabilize Somaliland’s security at the direction of external actors and that will be investigated. His speech did not reconcile the unfair treatment of the students that he referred to in his previous part of the speech where he addressed and threatened legal action against the owners of the privately-owned schools.

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