January 3, 2017 | Morning Headlines
UN Envoy To Somalia Welcomes Peace Agreement Between Galmudug, Puntland
02 January – Source: Garowe Online – 226 Words
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) welcomes the renewed commitments reached by regional Presidents Abdiweli Mohamed Ali “Gaas” of Puntland and Abdikarim Hussein Guled of Galmudug state to build peace and confidence in Gaalkacyo. The meeting was held at Villa Somalia and attended by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke and the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) in Somalia, Michael Keating.
Regional Presidents Gaas and Guled agreed to three main points to produce a cessation of hostilities in Gaalkacyo and build confidence between the two state administrations: 1) a separation of forces through a withdrawal of forces from the disputed city and redeployment of troops to their original bases; 2) the removal of all roadblocks installed by both Puntland and Galmudug and the opening of roads to allow free movement of people and goods; and 3) the implementation of joint training of police from both North and South Gaalkacyo to strengthen security, and build trust and cooperation between the two administrations.
Regional Presidents Gaas and Guled also agreed to meet in Gaalkacyo later this month to support the implementation of these commitments.“This renewed commitment to peace and confidence building in Gaalkacyo is a critical step to allow a process to resolve underlying issues that are causing the conflict and to build lasting peace,” said SRSG Keating.
Key Headlines
- UN Envoy To Somalia Welcomes Peace Agreement Between Galmudug Puntland (Garowe Online)
- Three Soldiers Killed In Al-Shabaab Ambush In Gedo (Shabelle News)
- Over 60 MPs Table Motion Against The Decision Of Re-contesting Of Parliamentary Seats (Goobjoog News)
- At Least 8 Die In Twin Vehicle Blasts In Somalia (UPI)
- Somalia Needs $864 Million For Urgent Aid: UN Agency (Xinhua)
- Somali Migrant’ Dies While Trying to Cross Bulgaria (Sofia News Agency)
- New Somali Midwifery Curriculum Gets International Recognition (UNFPA)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Over 60 MPs Table Motion Against The Decision Of Re-contesting Of Parliamentary Seats
02 January – Source: Goobjoog News – 251 Words
Over sixty newly elected members of the Lower House have submitted a motion to dismiss the recent decision to re-contest five seats which their results were nullified by Somalia’s Independent Electoral Dispute Resolution Mechanism (IEDRM).Speaking at the parliament’s session on Sunday, Ibrahim Isack Yarrow said the motion that was submitted on Saturday by 67 MPs was handed over to technical committee which will review it.“The five parliamentary seats which IEDRM asked for re-contesting has been held freely and fairly therefore we want the parliament to debate on it,” said Yarrow.
Last week, Somali National leadership Forum (NLF) ordered four of the eleven parliamentary seats nullified to be re-contested.In a press statement released by National Leadership Forum (NLF), the leaders also included in the seat won by the brother of the chief of Somalia’s intelligence Agency, Abdulkadir Gaafow Mohamud who was accused of involving irregularities.
Among the seats the leaders asked re-contesting is Mr. Mohamed Abdullahi Hassan, the outgoing Federal Minister of Youth and Sports.Hassan and another contender for the seat, Ahmed Sheikh Nur were disqualified for their role in the violence that occurred inside and outside the polling center in Jowhar last month in which a number of people, including electoral college delegates, were injured.In recently released NLF communiqué, Both Hassan and Nur were allowed to participate in the election which will attack place in Jowhar, the capital of Hirshabelle.The five seats which their elections will be held soon in Jubbaland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle, Puntland and Southwest states.
Three Soldiers Killed In Al-Shabaab Ambush In Gedo
02 January – Source: Shabelle News – 83 Words
At least three Somali military soldiers are reported to have been killed in an Al-Shabaab attack in Gedo region, south west of Somalia on Monday.The soldiers were travelling from Yurkud village, and heading to their base in Luuq town when Al-Shabaab fighters attacked their vehicle in a remote area, according to a local resident.The militants seized the weapons of the slain soldiers, before escaping the area of the shooting upon the arrival of Somali forces.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
At least 8 Die In Twin Vehicle Blasts In Somalia
02 January – Source: UPI – 266 Words
At least eight people were killed and 16 others wounded after two suicide vehicle bombs detonated near Mogadishu international airport on Monday afternoon. Ambulances services and Somali officials confirmed the casualties.Soldiers and civilians were among those killed by “massive and devastating” explosions, Ahmed Abdullahi, Wadajir district commissioner, told Anadolu Agency. The fatalities included the two suicide bombers.
The Al-Shabaab militant group claimed responsibility for the attack; it is second time the group has set off back-to-back blasts in suicide vehicles.One car bomber drove into a checkpoint outside the headquarters of the African Union Peacekeeping Mission in Somalia.”The first car bomb was a suicide,” Abdi Ganey, a Somali national intelligence and security agency officer, told Anadolu Agency. “Our forces stopped the car and seconds later the car went off. The other blast took place near a hotel, near the airport.”
A witness who asked not to be named for security reasons told Voice of America, “First I heard gunshots, then a car explosion and then we took a duck. When we came out to help the wounded we saw a big truck drive through it [checkpoint] and it exploded.”
Somalia Needs $864 Million For Urgent Aid: UN Agency
02 January – Source: Xinhua – 172 Words
Humanitarian partners working in Somalia are seeking 864 million US dollars to reach 3.9 million people with urgent life-saving assistance by the end of 2017. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) revealed that on Monday through a newly-developed Humanitarian Response Plan for Somalia for 2017. “The plan has been developed in consideration of and in complementarity with ongoing and planned development programming,” the OCHA said in its latest report.
Developed within the framework of a three-year humanitarian strategy for Somalia for 2016-2018, the response plan for 2017 aims to save lives, ensure the protection of the most vulnerable, strengthen resilience, support the provision of basic services and enable durable solutions, according to the OCHA. Five million Somalis, or more than 40 percent of the country’s population, do not have sufficient food, according to a UN-backed assessment report issued earlier this year. The report reveals the number includes over 300,000 children under five who are acutely malnourished, among them over 50,000 children who are severely malnourished.
‘Somali Migrant’ Dies While Trying to Cross Bulgaria
02 January – Source: Sofia News Agency – 120 Words
Border police on Monday discovered the body of a woman, possibly of Somali origin, near the village of Ravadinovo in southern Bulgaria, the Interior Ministry says..As police detained 31 irregular migrants with no valid documents in the area on Sunday, some of the latter said a woman who had been in their group had gone missing.Most of the detained migrants claimed they were from Afghanistan, but there were also six others, three supposedly from Pakistan and three from Somalia.Police say it is likely that the woman froze to death, but urge patience until the post-mortem is conducted.Two other migrants from the group – teenagers claiming to be from Somalia – were meanwhile hospitalized as their limbs were frozen.
OPINION , CULTURE & ANALYSIS
“Principal of Mogadishu Midwifery School and the Vice President of SOMA Hawa Abdullahi Elmi said the international recognition of Somali qualified midwives will contribute in the reduction of current high maternal and newborn deaths across all Somali regions,”
New Somali Midwifery Curriculum Gets International Recognition
30 December- Source: UNFPA – 703 Words
A new midwifery curriculum for Somali midwifery schools has been approved by the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) as adequately meeting globally accepted midwifery education standards. This means that the UNFPA supported training is now recognised to be of international standards and graduates from Somali midwifery schools will be internationally recognised.
UNFPA Somalia Midwifery Advisor Emily Denness explained that UNFPA worked with Somali midwifery stakeholders to develop a new version of training, with a new curriculum specifically designed to meet the global standards and essential competencies. Denness said key inputs into the development of the new curriculum came from Somali ministries of health and planning, Somali midwifery associations namely Somaliland Nursing and Midwifery Association (SLNMA), Puntland
Association of Midwives (PAM) and Somali Midwifery Association (SOMA), midwifery schools and universities, health education NGOs, and other technical experts.“UNFPA Somalia, led on the harmonization of the curriculum with international standards, while the stakeholder group led the structure and content of the curriculum ensuring relevance to the Somali context,” said Denness.
UNFPA Somalia has been supporting the training of midwives since 2011, with community midwifery programs to reach families. The level of Somali community midwifery training had been lower than the international standard to be recognised as a fully qualified midwife, so in 2015 the process began to help Somali midwifery training to become globally recognised, according to Denness.In 2016 the curriculum was approved by all Somali ministries of health and planning as the minimum standard for Somali midwifery training, and recognised for diploma level training. It was subsequently rolled out across all 15 midwifery-training institutions, which are supported by UNFPA and submitted, to the ICM for review, according to Denness.