Investigative Reports

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China and Somalia agree to joint patrols on Somaliland’s territorial waters on the Red Sea

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According to diplomatic and defense sources briefed on the matter, The People’s Republic of China and the Somalia Federal Government have agreed to conduct joint naval patrols in the Red Sea. As part of the agreement which has not been made public, Somalia is to withdraw from its membership of the Red Sea Initiative.

Sources add that the agreement is a direct result of the recently established Somaliland – Taiwan bilateral ties.

Both China and Somalia have condemned the bilateral ties between Taiwan and Somaliland as a violation of their sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Although the White House National Security Council has indirectly welcomed the new ties between Somaliland and Taiwan, neither country is formally recognized.

The PLA’s Logistics Support Base in Djibouti is China’s only overseas military installation and is part of its Strings of Pearl naval strategy that seeks a dominant role in the Red Sea.

The United States has expressed concerns over the Chinese military’s base in Djibouti and particularly its proximity to its Africa Command base and Djibouti’s long-term viability as a host given its heavy debt obligations to China.

Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti – Military Bases

On July 21st, President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi, addressing police and army cadet graduates reiterated Somaliland’s stance on the Red Sea Initiative and without mentioning the Somalia – China agreement.

Sources who spoke to Somaliland Chronicle confirm that President Bihi and few cabinet members have been briefed on the agreement between China and Somalia. It is unclear if Somaliland has formulated a strategy to prevent Chinese naval forces in its territorial waters.

It is unclear if the agreement will go into effect given Somalia’s tense political atmosphere following the ouster of the Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire by a surprise parliamentary no vote of confidence on Saturday.

US conducts airstrike in Somalia as its prime minister visits ...
Former Somali Prime Minister Mr. Hassan Ali Khaire with Former National Security Advisor Mr. John Bolton in Washington DC

During a two day internet shut off in Mogadishu, the Somali President Mr. Mohamed Abdillahi Farmajo has carried out a purge of the former Prime Minister’s allies from security, law enforcement, and other areas of the Somali government.

Somalia’s western backers have unanimously condemned the removal of Prime Minister Khaire and warned against term extension. The United States Embassy in Somalia went a step further and threatened unspecified actions against what it called “spoilers”.

Minister of Education and Science: 40% of Somaliland School-Age Children Lack Access to Basic Education

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According to a report given at Thursday’s cabinet meeting, chaired by HE President Muse Bihi Abdi, the Minister of Education and Science Hon. Ahmed Mohamed Diriye Egeh stated that 40% of school-age children in Somaliland lack access to basic education.

Minister Egeh addressing the state of education in Somaliland stated that out of 1,516 settlements in Somaliland, 620 or roughly 40% do not have any educational facilities including primary and middle schools.

It is unclear what and how the Ministry of Education and Science classifies as a settlement and Minister Egeh did not specify if the 620 are concentrated on particular areas of the country.

The Ministry of Education and Science is one of the best-funded institutions in Somaliland both by taxpayers and aid agencies. In the last three years, the Education sector received more than 80 million US dollars.

YearSL ShillingsUS Dollars (8500 Exch Rate)
2018                 131,172,389,040.00 $                         15,432,045.77
2019                 142,179,088,168.00 $                         16,726,951.55
2020                 187,791,459,458.00 $                         22,093,112.88
                 461,142,936,666.00 $                         54,252,110.20
YearUS Dollar
2018$8,716,472.08
2019$21,379,757.20
2020Unknown
$30,096,229.28

On July 6th, Minister Egeh on tour to the eastern regions of Somaliland, seemed befuddled when school-aged children informed him that there were no schools in their village and the nearest schools were tens of kilometers away.

In an interview with the BBC Somali Service, the Director-General Mr. Ahmed Abokor Mohamed alluded to a lack of funding being one of the reasons public education is lagging behind in Somaliland. In addition, he explained that some of the affected areas may be the rural and sparsely populated areas of Somaliland.

According to confidential sources who spoke to Somaliland Chronicle, Minister Egeh has recently appealed directly to President Bihi for help removing entrenched corruption at the Ministry of Education and Science. Since his appointment earlier year, Minister Egeh has made sweeping changes.

Efforts to reach the Minister and other government officials for this report were unsuccessful.

Where would the mediation process of Djibouti between Somaliland and Somalia lead to?

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There is a Somali proverb that says “Aanu wada hadalno wa aanu heshiino”, when translated means; initiating a dialogue between opposing sides will finally end in peace.

This is an apt description of mediation in peacebuilding; voluntary acts of facilitation by a third party (e.g. Djibouti) to help disputants (in this case; Somaliland and Somalia) reach a sustainable peace agreement.

So let us idealize what the characteristics of the mediator should be.  They should be impartial, neutral, committed, and well experienced in the disputed issues and familiar with their indigenous perceptions, cultures, values, and norms.

The mediation process in Djibouti between Somaliland and Somalia which took place on the 14th of June, 2020 is unprecedented in its kind, both due to the caliber and number of delegations participating such as the President of Djibouti, Mr. Ismail Omer Gelle; the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Mr. Abiye Ahmed; the President of Somaliland, Mr. Muse Bixi; the President of Somalia, Mr. Mohamed Abdillahi ‘’Farmaajo’’; the Ambassador of United States, Mr. Donald Yamamato and finally, various other delegations from IGAD, AU and EU.

An interesting detail to note is that there remains a period of only months before the duration of the presidential term of Mohamed Abdillahi Farmaajo comes to a close. This has raised many questions in the minds of the Somali people, again both of the ‘timing’ and the sudden ‘high priority status’ accorded to the meeting by the United States and the Ethiopian governments in particular and the international community in general.  To illuminate what this entails, I believe we have to look at the interest held by these two countries in Somalia and what is at stake.

On 16th of February, 2017, President Mohamed Abdillahi Farmaajo was elected in a landslide by the Somali congress. They elected him with the high hopes that by giving him the mandate to lead the country, President Mohamed Abdillahi Farmaajo will enact his election promises of forming a concise, hardworking and qualified government which upholds law and order, transparency, oppose structural corruption and nepotism while minimizing acts of terrorism by Al Shabaab in the country. A lesser-known but just as significant reason for the strong backing of the current administration initially was the expectation that they would form a strong government that can withstand any foreign military and political interference within Somali affairs in general and particularly from the historical enemy of Somalia, Ethiopia, under the guidance of their representative in Mogadishu, then, the strong man General Gabre.

Fast forward to today, after three years and a half in office, the Somali people have become disillusioned with President Mohamed Abdillahi‘s inept handling of the government which has worsened the daily life of the people of Somalia, a fact reflected by the lack of progress in every issue the government had promised to tackle. To pinpoint out how things went wrong for the Somalia President, we have to go back towards the first steps he had taken:

  1. Despite the Somali government adopting the federal system, the President had started to suppress the authorities of the federal states and chose to go into direct confrontation with them, expending valuable time and resources. He did succeed in controlling and putting under his influence; the two states of South West and Hir Shabelle with the help of the Ethiopian government led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. However, in turn, the President has lost the trust of the other federal states. Puntland and Jubaland states have nearly cut ties with the federal government while Galmudug state is in turmoil and their administration had collapsed due to interference from the presidential administration. With regard to why Ethiopia is providing strong support of the Somalian President, it is important to remember that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power as a result of the political upheaval caused by the uprising of the Oromia people – and thus the first time an Oromia official rules Ethiopia. Prime minister Abiy Ahmed, being well aware of the historical suppression and oppression of the Oromia by the Amhara and Tigre rulers, has sought to seize this opportunity afforded to him and change the longstanding foreign policy stratagems of his predecessors in spite of the imminent risks to his administration that is expected from his foes inside Ethiopia; particularly the leaders of Amhara, Tigre and the Oromia Liberation Front. This has compelled Abiy Ahmed to find new alliances and that is why he has made peace with Eritrea, the traditional foe of TPLF and Somalia, the traditional enemy of Amhara.
  2. President Mohamed Abdillahi, with the help of his mentor Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, has put a lot of diplomatic and economic pressure on Somaliland and tried to stop the flow of international donations and investments to the country, including the expansion of Berbera port by DP World, of which interestingly, there are currently rumors that Ethiopia is seeking to freeze its 19% share ownership of the Berbera port. This all demonstrates the subtle desire of the Somalia President to demonstrate influence within the region and showcase strong leadership despite the risk of actually being perceived as spiteful and vindictive by the Somali people.
  3. The United States and other western countries have pumped billions of dollars to stabilize Somalia by strengthening its security and armed forces and pay the salaries of 21,000 UNISOM soldiers present in Somalia. The end goal of these countries with their involvement is generally considered to involve limiting the influence of countries such as Turkey and China in the region. Despite their intentions however, the reality on the ground shows that little has changed with respect to the security situation with explosions and attacks by Al-Shabaab occurring regularly in the capital Mogadishu and across Somalia in general. Furthermore, nepotism and corruption have become the norm in Somalia, an ongoing matter of disappointment for the western countries who had high hopes for the administration of President Mohamed Abdillahi to seriously tackle this issue.                

With the presidential term of Mohamed Abdillahi Farmaajo coming to an unsatisfactory end, his allies, namely the United States, Ethiopia, and other western countries have sought to launch a last-ditch attempt in salvaging his legacy among the Somali people by holding a high caliber mediation conference in Djibouti between Somaliland and Somalia. Their bet was to demonstrate that Somaliland is willing to come back to the fold of Somalia and this would be a winning proposition to the Somali public. In their diplomatic sessions, it was clear that they felt that an apology from Somalia by President Mohamed Abdillahi to the people of Somaliland for the atrocities committed to them by Siyad Bare would be enough to heal all wounds and provide grounds for an immediate reunion. However, the fact remains that Somaliland approached this opportunity for mediation to take some time to build trust between the two states and in addition, the fulfillment of the outcomes from the three previous agreements. The main outcomes that had resulted from this latest attempt at mediation namely included joint management of the air space in Somaliland; a stop to the placement of any obstacles towards the flow of international aid and investment to Somaliland and co-operation in security and free movement of the Somali people between the two countries.

With the Djibouti mediation coming to a deadlock, a communique was finally issued calling for the formation of three committees to tackle the three issues mentioned above as a means of ensuring that the meeting did not officially end up as a failure, but which has to be admitted, will not bear further fruit as past history has already taught us.

About the Author:

Ismail Abdi Abdillahi (Bashe Abdi Gaboobe), holds Marine Engineer Certificate from Arab Maritime Transport Academy in Alexandria-Egypt, Marine Engineer Certificate from Sharjah- UAE, Post Graduate Diploma in Peace Building from Hargeysa University and Master degree in Peace Building from Coventry University, UK. Mr. Gaboobe can be reached gaboobe _3[@]hotmail.com

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

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Notice: This article by Somaliland Chronicle 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.

High-Level Ethiopian Delegation Visit Somaliland

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An Ethiopian delegation led by the Minister of Finance Mr. Ahmed Shide arrived today in Hargeisa, the capital of the Republic of Somaliland. The delegation includes the Minister of Education Dr.Ing Getahun Mekuria and the State Minister for Foreign Affairs.

This previously unannounced visit comes days after news broke that an Egyptian delegation paid a two-day visit to Somaliland for talks on economic cooperation between Somaliland and Egypt. So far, no official information has been released regarding the purpose of the delegation’s visit.

Tensions between Ethiopia and Egypt are at an all-time high over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Egypt calls the filling of the dam an “existential threat”.

Long-established bilateral ties between Ethiopia and Somaliland have withered under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed …Despite the fact that Ethiopia is one of Somaliland’s largest trading partners and holds a 19% stake in Berbera Port currently managed by Dubai World Ports. The 442 million dollar project is the largest direct foreign investment in Somaliland.

President Muse Bihi Abdi in Addis with Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu and Hon Ahmed Shide.

It is unclear if the Ethiopian delegation will offer any concessions to ensure Somaliland remains in its political sphere and keep Egypt at bay.

This is the second time a delegation led by Mr. Shide, the highest-ranking ethnic Somali in the Ethiopian government visited Somaliland for talks with President Bihi. No details regarding the meeting in late February have been made public.

International Partners praise Somaliland political parties’ agreement to hold the parliamentary and local election in 2020

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JOINT PRESS STATEMENT ON SOMALILAND’S POLITICAL PARTIES AGREEMENT

The International Partners (listed below) supporting Somaliland’s democratization process welcome the Somaliland Political Parties agreement, signed on 12th July 2020, to conduct Local Council and Parliamentary Elections in 2020.

This landmark agreement presents new opportunities to advance preparations for the elections and requires the NEC to present technical time schedule within 14 days starting from 12th July 2020.

Having all Somalilanders being part of the process, notably the large majority of young women and men who have never voted for their representatives or had the opportunity to be elected, is of utmost importance for the democratic credentials and the stability of Somaliland.

The international partners call for all stakeholders to ensure that women, youth and minority groups are being included, both as voters and candidates and call on the President, Political Parties, Parliament, the NEC and the Supreme Court to include women and minorities quota in their decisions.

The international community strongly commends Somaliland’s progress towards the elections and are ready to support the Somaliland’s electoral process, including safeguarding the women and the minorities quota.

* Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Djibouti, Ethiopia, European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Ireland, Italy, Kenya, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States, and United Nations.

Ministry of Transportation Website Exposes Personal Details of 20,000 Drivers

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The website of the Ministry of Transportation and Road Development is exposing sensitive and personal details of 20,000 former driver license holders. According to the Ministry’s website, the list is intended to help former driver license holders to look up the details of their previous license to help them with the application process of the newer and secure driver’s license.

There is no security mechanism to prevent unauthorized access of this sensitive information on the ministry’s website, the links expose the entire list at once. It is unclear if the Ministry of Transportation and Road Development deems the list sensitive or it has been published by mistake.

Although no citizen services are provided online by the Somaliland government, most government websites lack basic security features such as SSL and best practices to safeguard critical information.

The Ministry of Information and Telecommunication Technology whose own website is among many insecure government websites did not answer questions for this article.

Our efforts to reach the Minister of Transportation and Road Development, Mr. Abdillahi Abokor Osman were unsuccessful.

Taiwan offers scholarships to Somaliland students

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The Tale of Two Cities: Halane Compound vs Mogadishu

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Facing the Indian Ocean, a beautiful beachfront Halane Compound houses foreign dignitaries and their embassy staff members, over 300 NGOs, contractors, and AMISOM mission representatives in Somalia. The fortified Halane Compound tenants and the city of Mogadishu dwellers live in parallel universes. One secure and luxurious with all necessary amenities, including hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues and resorts, and the other of misery and sufferings of massive scale – the capital city, Mogadishu. The mission of these multinational entities overlap and at times they are funded over similar projects from different donors with no accountability.

Chelsea Village, one of the many privately-owned “secure” accommodations in Mogadishu International Airport zone (MIA) or Halane

Mogadishu was under a lockdown order before the Coronavirus outbreak. It is a city under siege. When the Somali Federal government failed to secure the peace and was unable to defeat the Al- Shabab insurgence, they decided to lock down the city and they barricaded themselves inside the Villa Somalia compound. Consequently, due to this, blockage businesses suffered and as a result, some of them were forced to close. The few that survive, struggle to pay customs duties and sales taxes to the government and to the terrorist group.

Somalia is approximately 178,218 square miles of mostly plain and accessible terrain, yet a military force of over twenty-thousand strong from the six African nations plus the Somali national army, fully mechanized with strong support from air and sea, could not defeat a group of approximately 3,000 poorly armed insurgents. One wonders why such a military force with disproportionately superior capability could not defeat and dismantle a weak terrorist militia.

Somalia receives assistance from many African and European countries to train their military and police force. This cross-continental trainings at times cause the breakdown of unit cohesiveness and command difficulties. Hence, the occasional confrontation among Somali military units themselves with major casualties. This behavior makes it very difficult to carry combat missions when there are underlying disciplinary concerns within a platoon.

It has been thirty years since the collapse of the military regime of Siad Barre. Unfortunately, Somalia did not recover from the ruins and destructions of the past thirty years. Although there is a provisional constitution and established regional states under the central government, the current regime of Fermajo undermined the rule of law. He undermined the constitutional rights of the regional states to hold independent local elections by forcing them to elect hand-picked loyal heads of states. He imposed economic sanctions to member regional states and treated them as foreign adversaries by withholding the allotted funds from international donors states and organizations.

Contrary, to the chaos from neighboring Somalia, Somaliland maintained stability and peace within its borders after reclaiming its independence from Somalia after a failed union in 1960. Somaliland held five presidential elections by one-man-one-vote. Recently, Somaliland stepped up its recognition campaign efforts and it has gained momentum as the Somaliland name echoed around the globe including superpower nations of the United States and China when Somaliland established diplomatic relations with Taiwan. The United States hailed the new Somaliland-Taiwan agreement. Several African countries including Gambia, Kenya, Guinea Conakry showed a renewed interest in discussing and promoting Somaliland agenda. Most recently UAE recognized the Somaliland passport. The new aggressive foreign policy is very promising, and in a very short time, it has yielded tangible and concrete results.

About the Author:

Mohamed Adan Samatar is a Former State of Arizona Government Management and holds BSc, MS Agriculture. He can be reached adan.samatar01[@]gmail.com

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

Creative Commons License

Notice: This article by Somaliland Chronicle 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 – Egyptian Government Delegation Visits Somaliland

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According to sources, an Egyptian government delegation visited Somaliland on July 12 for a series of high-level meetings with members of Somaliland government on bilateral ties and cooperation between the two countries.

Sources indicate that members of the delegation whose visit lasted two days have participated in a series of high-level meetings with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development. It is unclear if President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi met the Egyptian delegation.

According to a member of Somaliland government who spoke on strict condition of anonymity, the meeting was initiated at the highest level from Cairo, who are taking a closer look at the strategic region on the heels of newly established diplomatic ties between Somaliland and Taiwan.

Sources add that the Ethiopian government has lodged a formal protest with Somaliland within hours of the Egyptian delegation’s arrival in Hargeisa.

Although there has been previous high-level contact between Somaliland and Egypt, the latest visit from the Egyptian delegation to Somaliland comes at a time of heightened tension between Egypt and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.

Video: Somaliland Political Parties Agree to hold elections in 2020

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