August 3, 2018 | Daily Monitoring Report
Political Parties Criticize President Farmajo’s Call To End Sanctions On Eritrea
03 August – Source: Halbeeg News – 293 Words
Four political parties have expressed disapproval of President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo’s call for lifting sanctions and arms embargo on Eritrea. In a joint statement issued by Daljir, Wadajir, Horusocod and Kulan parties, opposition politicians say they shocked by President Farmajo’s statement during his three day state visit to Eritrea. “We, the undersigned political parties of Wadajir, Daljir, Kulan and Horusocod are dismayed by H.E President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo’s call to lift sanctions on the state of Eritrea during his recent state visit to Asmara” the statement reads in part.
The parties welcomed the resumption of relations between the two countries after a period of more than a decade but termed the President’s response as rushed without considering the damage it might cause the republic of Djibouti, which has close ties with Somalia: “We enthusiastically welcome the overall thawing of relations among states in the Horn of Africa. But we are deeply concerned about President Farmajo’s irresponsible and premature action at the expense of the republic of Djibouti, which has been Somalia’s closest and most reliable ally”
They further observed the President had let down the people of and government of Djibouti, their sacrifices and efforts in helping Somali people, notwithstanding. “Regrettably, President Farmajo has betrayed the extraordinary sacrifices of the government and people of Djibouti. His decision to speak on behalf of Eritrea was a violation of all diplomatic norms and protocols,” reads the statement. .
Finally, the parties made a public apology to the people and the government of Djibouti on behalf of the Somali people “for the mistake made by the Somali President against Djiboutians”. The United Nations Security Council has imposed sanctions on Eritrea for providing support to armed groups in Somalia and not ending its occupation of Djiboutian territories.
Key Headlines
- Political Parties Criticize President Farmajo’s Call To End Sanctions On Eritrea (Halbeeg News)
- Federal Council of Ministers Holds Meeting With Puntland Counterparts (Jowhar News)
- Race To Fill Top Post Of CBS At The Corner As Governor Bashir’s First Term Ends (Halbeeg News)
- So Why Is Somaliland Africa’s Most Successful Non-country? (The East African)
- Premature Exit Of AU Troops From Somalia Could Harm Gains Made On The Security Front Cautions UK Defence Secretary (AMISOM)
- Somali Expat Plans Longline Venture (Seafoodsource.com)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Federal Council of Ministers Holds Meeting With Puntland Counterparts
02 August – Source: Jowhar News – 202 Words
The Federal Council of Ministers’ meeting with Puntland Council of Ministers was held in the Puntland regional capital of Garowe on Thursday. Chaired by Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire and attended by Federal Government ministers and Puntland officials including President Mohamed Abdiweli Gaas, his Deputy, Abdihakin Haji Omar Ammey, the meeting focused on a wide range of issues including enhancing cooperation between the Federal State of Puntland and the Federal Government, strengthening of governance and the federal system, among other issues.
Briefing the press after the meeting, Puntland Presidency Spokesman, Abdullahi Mohamed Jama “Quran Je’el”, said other issues discussed in the meeting included the release of about 600 pirates serving jail terms in Garowe’s main prison. The prisoners were convicted and sentenced in foreign countries.
Somalia’s Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and Minister of Justice, Hassan Hussein Hajji, were tasked to take the lead in start legal proceedings for the release of the inmates. The Cabinet also held its weekly meeting in Garowe after its meeting with Puntland authorities. The Federal Cabinet will today attend celebrations commemorating the 20th Puntland anniversary. Prime Minister Khaire and his delegation lauded the people and leaders of Puntland for the warm reception accorded to them.
Race To Fill Top Post Of CBS At The Corner As Governor Bashir’s First Term Ends
02 August – Source: Halbeeg News – 257 Words
The battle for the post of Governor of the Central Bank of Somalia is expected to take shape as the incumbent’s contract comes to an end in November this year. In 2009, the Somali government revived the Central Bank as part of its campaign to restore national institutions. In an advertisement posted in the influential “The Economist” magazine, the Central Bank states, “it is seeking a competent candidate to fill the position in the cash-rich agency”. The current head’s contract expires in November after serving the mandatory terms of 4 years.
“Somalia is emerging from conflict and rebuilding its economy, including its key economic institutions. The position of Governor of the Central Bank of Somalia (CBS) will fall vacant on November 1, 2018,” the Bank says, “The new Governor will lead the CBS through major ongoing reforms, including the issuance of a new national currency, rebuilding the CBS’s institutional capacity, developing monetary instruments, and implementing the CBS’s mandate, which includes the development of financial intermediation and regulation of the financial system.”
According to the advert, the Governor, who is the chief executive officer of the CBS, will be responsible for the management of the Bank under the general direction of the Board of Directors. The Governor also serves as the Chair of the Board and is the principal representative of the CBS in its relations with the Federal Government of Somalia, other public entities, and bodies and international financial institutions. Bashir Isse Ali, who has been serving the office since 2013, was appointed by former Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
So, Why Is Somaliland Africa’s Most Successful Non-country?
03 August – Source: The East African – 831 Words
When I told a friend recently that I was going to Hargeisa, he looked at me in a way that told me immediately that he had no clue what I was talking about. He eventually asked: “Where is that?” Many asked me this same question in 2014 when I first went to Hargeisa. So in many ways, here in East Africa, as elsewhere in the world, I suppose, Hargeisa remains an unknown quantity nearly 30 years since Somaliland, the country whose capital city it is, broke away from the rest of Somalia and declared itself independent.
There must be many reasons for this. The principal one, however, is that, even as Somalilanders are fiercely emphatic that theirs is an independent country, the rest of the world insists on not recognising the territory as such. Funny; isn’t it? Millions of people living in a defined territory, with a keen sense of their own history as a state, see themselves as a country. The territory has a government that is popularly elected in the kind of competitive multiparty elections that are so loved by the “international community” of democracy enthusiasts and advocates, and are used as a yardstick for judging whether governments are legitimate or not.
Somaliland even has passports that its citizens use to travel to many parts of the world, except to the territory that still calls itself Somalia. Some of the world’s better-known airlines fly there on a regular basis. A number of UN agencies have offices there, not to provide emergency aid as they do in many places in the world, thanks to dysfunctional governments in most cases, but to support local efforts in pursuit of development and wellbeing.
Premature Exit Of AU Troops From Somalia Could Harm Gains Made On The Security Front, Cautions UK Defence Secretary
02 August – Source: AMISOM – 430 Words
UK State Secretary for Defence Rt. Hon. Gavin Williamson has lauded the progress made on the security front in Somalia, but cautioned that the premature exit of the AU troops from the Horn of Africa country, could have an adverse effect on gains already made. The Defence Secretary said the UK government was keen to ensure the exit of AMISOM from Somalia is not undertaken, until the latter is fully capable of handling the national security responsibility.
“The role they play is one that has sometimes been a little bit forgotten around the world, but it should be something that should be highlighted and should be celebrated; because without the decisive action that has been undertaken, without the work that they have been doing to deliver security, Somalia would be in a very difficult place,” the Defence Secretary said shortly after meeting with the AMISOM Force Commander Lt. General Jim Beesigye Owoyesigire, the Deputy Head of AMISOM Mr. Simon Mulongo and other senior AMISOM officials, at the Force Headquarters in the capital Mogadishu, on Tuesday.
“We discussed a number of issues, particularly the ongoing support that they give to the African Union and AMISOM, the Transition Plan implementation, the activities that we are trying to scale up in Somalia; and also, we discussed the new (UN) resolution. AMISOM has certain tasks to undertake in the fulfilment of its mandate,” Mulongo explained.
The minister, who was making his first official visit to Somalia expressed the UK government’s commitment to furthering support to the Somali National Security Forces through capacity building. “What we need to do is make sure that the Somali government has the necessary capabilities and resources, to be able to deliver security within its own borders,” he noted.
The Rt. Hon. Williamson also visited the AMISOM Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Cell, where he interacted with the AU and Somali facilitators on issues of child protection, gender and conflict related sexual violence. He commended the “extensive cooperation” among diverse stakeholders, that is enabling the reconstruction of Somalia. “Coming here to Somalia, for the first time, has made a huge impression on me,” he noted. “It’s been great to see the close working relationship we have with AMISOM and so many different nations from right around the globe. What has struck me are the real opportunities that Somalia presents.”
The UK government through the United Kingdom Mission Support Team (UKMST), is supporting the AU Mission in diverse ways and has bolstered training support to the troops and their counterparts in the Somali security forces in Mogadishu and in the federal states.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“A lack of cold storage in the country’s ports, and having to create marketing channels from scratch are also obstacles that must be addressed. Learning the preferences of foreign markets potentially interested in Somali fish is also a challenge for Gaal.”
Somali Expat Plans Longline Venture
03 August – Source: Seafoodsource.com – 887 Words
Somalia has the longest coastline of any country on the continent of Africa, and has abundant tuna and marlin resources. Yet, there are no Somali owners of commercial longline vessels. Fishing by Somalis is mainly conducted on an artisanal scale, with commercial fishing boats owned and crewed by foreigners. One Somali-American hopes to change that.
Abdifatah Gaal came to the U.S.A. while young, attended the University of Washington, and made a career in IT, working for Microsoft and Northrop-Grumman. Now married with six children, he lives in Virginia and works with the Department of Defense. He plans to invest his life’s savings in a used Japanese longline vessel, have it sailed to Mogadishu, Somalia, and refit it if necessary along the way – perhaps in General Santos, the Philippines; or in Bali, Indonesia. The actual fishing operations would be carried out by his younger brother, who lives in the United Kingdom, and by a cousin living in Mogadishu. He expects to start with a Filipino crew and transition to locals as they are trained. “I’m taking quite a bit of risk, but my license is ready,” he said.
Gaal said obtaining his license was facilitated by Somali authorities, who have expressed an eagerness to promote local ownership in the country’s fishing industry. If and when his vessel commences operations, his would be the first real Somali-owned longline vessel in country, though he said that there have been some recent turnkey deals with Turkey and South Africa in which Somali businessmen have invited foreign vessels for a cut.
Currently , there are vessels of many nations taking fish in Somalia’s exclusive economic zone – with many not properly licensed or controlled. Somalia, caught for decades in a state of civil war, has paid little attention to its fisheries until recently. Even now, some fighting continues between government forces and the Islamist group Al-Shabaab. However, with most major fighting stopped, a functioning bureaucracy is beginning to return to the country. However, in the meantime, Somalia’s different autonomous regions, such as Puntland in the north, issued many licenses to foreign vessels as a source of income while exercising no effective control over their activities, so foreign vessels routinely exceeded their permitted catch quantities. Other vessels, such as those from nearby Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Yemen, just took advantage of the chaotic situation to fish without a license.
Anger over illegal fishing – which makes it harder for local fishers to make a living – has been cited as one reason some Somalis turned to piracy. However, recent progress in strengthening the national government, and in enforcement, bodes well for the fishery. The time may be right for Somalis to finally utilize their own marine resources. Somali political leaders agreed to let the regional administrations issue fishing licenses within 24 nautical miles, and to let the federal government issue fishing licenses beyond 24 nautical miles. Previously, each autonomous region issued licenses, with little coordination.
A company from Norway, Trygg Mat Tracking, is providing the Somali government with tracking of vessels suspected of fishing illegally in the Somali exclusive economic zone. Though the country does not have a sufficient navy to actually stop it, the vessels are identified and a report is made to Interpol to prevent the vessels from coming into any port with their catch, or they may be seized when entering another country’s EEZ. Two vessel were seized in this way in the Maldives in January 2018.
TOP TWEETS
@HarunMaruf: ISIS claims responsibility for the killing of three Govt soldiers in Elasha Biyaha Mogadishu suburb on Thursday. The three soldiers were at a junction when they were attacked by plain-clothed men armed with pistols. #Somalia
@UKinSomalia: “Inspiring to see the crucial role Somali women play in rebuilding #Somalia. Delighted that the #UK brings its world leading expertise to support AMISOM & Somali security forces to empower women & to prevent & protect women & girls at the community level.” @GavinWilliamson
@HarunMaruf: BREAKING: 4 political groups have condemned@M_Farmaajo call hor lifting of arms embargo on Eritrea. The groups describe @M_Farmaajo’s move as “irresponsible and premature action at the expense of the Republic of Djibouti, which has been Somalia’s closest and most reliable ally”.
@mary_harper: I am devastated by the shooting dead in Mogadishu of my brave young friend Mohamed Mahamoud Sheik who opened the city’s first dry cleaners in decades- and also a florists @CGSomalia
@DalsanFM: Somalis On Twitter (SOT) react to the death of young entrepreneur Mohamed Sheikh Ali with the hashtag#WeAreNotSafe currently trending. Ali who headed the@SGMOGADISHU was shot dead by unknown gunmen in Mogadishu on Thursday.
@HarunMaruf: Video: ISIS sentencing – Mahad Mohamud Abdi Abu Yasin who has a Russian citizenship spent time in Syria, Court says he was planning to set up an ISIS splinter group in Somalia. Mohamed Daud Dahir is ex-Al-Shabab member-turned ISIS member; he managed finances. Each gets 15yrs jail
@BilanCodes: We are extremely shocked to learn the murder of our friend & contributor @Moesheikali in #Mogadishu earlier today. Mohamed was inspirational entrepreneur and beacon of hope for Somali youth. Our thoughts and condolences goes to his immediate family and friends. #Somalia mourns
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Leaders of Federal Government of Somalia and Puntland regional administration pose for a group photo in Garowe.
Photo: @HarunMaruf