December 28, 2017 | Morning Headlines

Main Story

Hirshabelle Parliament Endorses Cabinet

27 December – Source: Sahal News – 150 Words

Somalia’s Hirshabelle parliament on Wednesday approved the Federal Member State’s new Cabinet which President, Mohamed Abdi Ware announced last month. A parliamentary session which was attended by the most of the state lawmakers has overwhelmingly voted in favor of the Cabinet. The regional assembly speaker said that 77 lawmakers have endorsed the Cabinet as two MPs abstained from voting during the today’s session which was held in Jowhar.

The Cabinet which comprises 57 Ministers, Deputy Ministers are set to work under the President’s guidelines. Speaking with reporters in Jowhar , Mohamed Abdi Waare said that newly named officials will be focusing on tackling security and starting new developmental projects in the region. He said state is aiming to re-open closed roads and lift blockades imposed by the Al-Shabaab villages near Hiiraan region. The Cabinet’s approval comes as most of the state lawmakers are complaining over less salary for the past three months.

Key Headlines

Hirshabelle Parliament Endorses Cabinet (Sahal News)
Senate Women Members Form A Caucus (Goobjoog News)
Mogadishu Mayor Announces A Conference On Peace And Development Of Banadir Region (Dhacdo.com)
New Round Of Polio Vaccines Issued In Somalia (CGTN Africa)
Somalia 2017: New President Old Problems With Terrorism Drought (VOA)

NATIONAL MEDIA

Senate Women Members Form A Caucus

27 December – Source: Goobjoog News – 170 Words

Somali women senators in the Upper House have today formed a caucus to champion for the rights of women by forging a common stand for issues relating to women. The event which took place in the Upper House in Mogadishu was conducted through a voting exercise with a ballot box for transparency while casting the voting cards.

The 13 member women Senators elected a chair lady, a two deputy chair ladies, a secretary and an treasurer among themselves. Senator Shukri Adan Mohamed was elected as the Chair Lady after her competitor has withdrawn from the race, while Senator Deka Hassan Hussein was elected as her deputy and Senator Samsam Dahir Mohamud as the treasurer.

One senator could not take part in the election as 12 member took part in the exercise. The session was presided over by the Speaker of the Senate Abdi Hashi Abdullahi who was flanked by his first deputy Abshir Ahmed Bukhari who noted the importance of the women members in the Senate to have a united leadership.

Mogadishu Mayor Announces A Conference On Peace And Development Of Banadir Region

27 December- Source: Dhacdo.com- 108 Words

Mogadishu Mayor, Thabit Mohamed Abdi has yesterday detailed Banadir district neighbourhood program. Thabit said his administration is committed to the development of the district neighbourhood program. He urged residents of Mogadishu to work closely with the administration and refer to anyone they are complaining, he also promised an immediate probe into those people allegedly practising corruption if they got the news.

The Mayor was addressing residents in Kaxda district saying his administration will launch a consultative conference for peace and development of Banadir region. He pointed out that the conference will be discuss how to achieve peace in the region and will be attended by peace experts from the Banadir districts.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

New Round Of Polio Vaccines Issued In Somalia

27 December – Source: CGTN Africa -173 Words

Health officials in Somalia supported by UN Children’s Fund and WHO have began a new round of polio vaccine targeting thousands of children. This campaign comes just fours months after World Health Organization declared the East African nation polio free – after it recorded no polio cases since 2014. According to the UN, conflict and insecurity in South and Central Somalia especially has continued to hinder access to children during polio immunization campaigns in 2017, with about 240,000 children under five years of age reported as not accessible for more than a year.

The Horn of Africa nation has been polio free since August 2014, when the last case of polio was reported from Hobyo district of Mudug region. The declaration by WHO two years ago keeps Somalia outside the last group of countries which still record cases of polio in the world. WHO has however warned Somalia remains at risk of importation of the virus from these countries.

OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE

“Somalia says it plans to take over security responsibilities from the AU. A security force of 22,000 is to be created, and Turkey opened a new military base near Mogadishu in September to help train Somali forces. In the midst of these political and security challenges was the drought, which affected millions of Somalis as their animals died and they went hungry,”

Somalia 2017: New President, Old Problems With Terrorism, Drought

27 December – Source: VOA – 423 Words

In 2017, Somalia elected a new president as it battled severe drought and a resurgent al-Shabab. In October, the worst terror attack in the country’s history killed more than 500 people. Meanwhile, the U.S. military is ramping up its military operations as the African Union draws down its 10-year-old peacekeeping mission.

After months of political wrangling and questions of whether a fair election could be conducted amid rampant vote-buying, Somalia’s parliament elected a new leader in February, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, better known as “Farmajo.” Farmajo’s win was influenced by Somalia’s past 27 years of insecurity, according to former Puntland government minister Ali Ahmed Fatah.

So people were looking for a fresh start and I think Farmajo was seen as an honest politician, by most people, including the new parliamentarians who came to town shortly before that election. Many Somalis want to see changes before the next election, including the introduction of a one person-one vote system. In December, the country started registering and accrediting independent political parties for the first time in nearly 50 years.

But insecurity remains a serious problem. In October, the worst terrorist bombing in the country’s history, blamed on the terrorist group Al-Shabaab, killed more than 500 people at one of Mogadishu’s busiest intersections. Meanwhile, U.S. military involvement in Somalia has increased. The U.S. said an airstrike on an Al-Shabaab training camp in November killed more than 100 militants.

The independent Bureau of Investigative Journalism says the U.S. carried out at least 30 drone strikes this year in the country. But as the U.S. steps up its involvement in the region, the African Union is drawing down its forces. The first batch of 1,000 soldiers are to leave Somalia by the end of the year, though the AU says a total withdrawal will be dictated by conditions on the ground.

ADDITIONAL SOMALIA NEWS WILL APPEAR IN THE AFTERNOON REPORT

The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of AMISOM, and neither does their inclusion in the bulletin/website constitute an endorsement by AMISOM.

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