October 1, 2018 | Morning Headlines

Main Story

Somali Government Has Dismantled Terrorist Networks And Hideouts, Says Foreign Minister

30 September – Source: Halbeeg News – 322 Words

The Somali government, in collaboration with its partners, has defeated Al-Shabaab and ISIS militia groups in Somalia, the country’s Foreign Affairs Minister Ahmed Awad Isse told world leaders gathered at the just concluded United Nations General Assembly.

The minister said the ideologies presented by Al-Shabaab or Al-Qaida are no longer appealing, and the groups no longer have new recruits. In addition, leaders and members are surrendering along with so-named ‘technicals’ (improvised attack vehicles) and weapon caches. “Working with our partners, the nation has dismantled terrorist networks and hideouts. It is also engaged with religious leaders, community elders, women, youth and the civil society to “turn the tide against the twisted ideology of hate and religious intolerance,” said Isse while addressing the UN Assembly’s annual debate.

Solving that problem once and for all requires a multi-faceted approach, added the minister: “The silver lining is, young men and women are not joining terrorist groups.” In that context, the Minister called on the UN Security Council to lift the arms embargo on his country, stressing that stronger fighting capacity will help national security forces fully dismantle terrorist groups in a shorter time.

The Somali official thanked the African Union Mission for Somalia (AMISOM) and its personnel for their sacrifice and keeping Somalis safe, noting that the country “remains indebted to them.” Alongside that, gains in security, as well as the mission’s support to Somali security institutions will enable the country to gradually take over responsibilities from AMISOM, he said.

The minister highlighted that the country’s reformed, inclusive electoral model has been approved at both central and provincial levels. He also informed the General Assembly of the country’s economic development goals, building upon its productive capacity, natural potential and international trade: “We are seeking to strengthen alliances with our core partners to promote trade and investment opportunities even as we widen our scope in our quest for broader, far-reaching economic cooperation. We are ready for business.”

Key Headlines

Somali Government Has Dismantled Terrorist Networks And Hideouts Says Foreign Minister (Halbeeg News)
Ex-President Elected Chair Of Union For Peace And Democracy Party (Goobjoog News)
Galmudug Court Hands Prison Sentences To Journalist For “Fake News” (Radio Shabelle)
Uganda Warns UN On Troops Cut In Somalia (Daily Monitor)
Financial Deals Herald Somalia’s Epic Rise From The Ashes Of War (Daily Nation)

NATIONAL MEDIA

Ex-President Elected Chair Of Union For Peace And Democracy Party

30 September – Source: Goobjoog – 187 Words

Former President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has been elected interim chairman of the newly formed Union for Peace and Democracy (UPD) party. Officials of the party meeting in Mogadishu on Sunday endorsed Mohamud, who served as the first President of the Transitional Federal Government between 2012 and 2016, to serve party boss of the new political outfit.

The new party, which brings together Mohamud’s Peace and Development Party and Daljir Party, also approved a coalition Constitution: “We elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as interim chairman for six months. The national party convention will meet in March to elect permanent officials of the party,” UPD allied Member of Parliament, Ahmed Fiqi, told Goobjoog News. Fiqi claimed that the new party now commands single majority in the Federal Parliament with a total of 80 lawmakers.

The party, which will be officially unveiled Thursday, will battle it out for the country’s presidency in the 2020 elections. Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Guled hinted in July that plans for the formation of a new party led by President Mohamed Farmaajo were underway. Mohamud lost to Farmaajo in last February’s elections in a tight contest.

Galmudug Court Hands Prison Sentences To Journalist For “Fake News”

30 September – Source: Radio Shabelle – 126 Words

A court in Galmudug capital, Dhusamareb, on Sunday sentenced a local journalist, Mohamed Abdiweli Tohow, to six months in jail for publishing false reports. The court found the reporter, working for a local Radio station and London-based TV, guilty of reporting ‘false news’ regarding the security situation in Galmudug.

A journalists’ rights group condemned the sentence handed to the journalist, terming it “unlawful punishment” and called for his immediate and unconditional release. Galmudug intelligence personnel arrested the journalist on September 22 over a report broadcast the previous day on a Mogadishu-based radio station. Somalia is ranked one of the most dangerous places in the world for one to work as a journalist. The Horn of Africa country still remains volatile as it faces myriad security challenges.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Uganda Warns UN On Troops Cut In Somalia

30 September – Source: Daily Monitor – 287 Words

Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda on Thursday warned world leaders gathered for the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York that any reduction of peacekeeping troops in Somalia should match the strengthening of the country’s security forces. In a speech he delivered, Dr Rugunda said the security situation in Somalia has improved significantly since African countries deployed troops under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) 11 years ago.

But Dr Rugunda warned the UN on its push for gradual reduction in number of Amisom troops and channeling most efforts to strengthening Somali security setup: “The failure to carefully manage the process could imperil the political and security gains that have been made in Somalia,” he warned.Uganda, with more than 6,000 troops in Somalia, is the largest contributor to the 10-year-old African Union-led mission. Other troop contributing countries include Ethiopia, Kenya, Burundi, and Djibouti.

The 15-member UN Security Council, the world body’s most powerful organ, in August 2016 adopted a resolution to channel most efforts to strengthening the Somali National Army as a long-term objective. Dr Rugunda said currently 80 per cent of the once Al-shabaab dominated territory has been liberated and both the Somali government and foreign missions which used to operate from outside countries are now based in Mogadishu, the Somali capital, which gains should be strengthened.

He cited Somalia as the ideal example of collaboration between the UN and African Union on African problems: “In Africa, the evidence has been that where the cooperation has happened the results have been positive,” he said.

OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE

“Somalia’s diaspora is a veritable source of skills, leadership and remittances to rebuild the country. And from ‘the world’s most dangerous city’, Mogadishu is experiencing an economic boom”.

Financial Deals Herald Somalia’s Epic Rise From The Ashes Of War

30 September – Source: Daily Nation – 911 Words

Somalia’s economy and society are rising, like the proverbial Sphinx, from the ashes of civil war.
Mogadishu’s post-conflict economic recovery reflects a savoury mélange of government reforms, investments by Somalia’s new business elite, remittances by the diaspora and new groundswells of international goodwill and financial flows.

A new deal for Somalia is in the offing. On September 27, 2018 the European Union (EU) approved a 100 million euros ($116 million) in budget support to the Somali Government to be disbursed until 2021, for the first time in 27 years. The World Bank approved $80 million in grants to fund public finance reforms on September 26, 2018.

Earlier, on September 6, 2018, the Bank also unveiled the flagship infrastructure project, The Somali Urban Resilience Project (SURP), worth US$9 million, a test case for municipal infrastructure delivery. And in January 2018, the German Government allocated 23.4 million Euros to support the rehabilitation of urban infrastructure as part of a Multi Partner Fund.

On the sidelines of the recently concluded China-Africa Summit in Beijing on September 3-4, Somalia signed to China’s multibillion dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). But Mogadishu’s road to recovery is steep. With a population of 15,181,925 (2018 estimates), and an income per capita of $226 by 2002 (compared to $515 in Sub-Saharan Africa), UNDP’s 2001 Human Development Index ranked Somalia 161 out of 163 countries, one of the poorest countries in the world.

Long before the civil war started in 1991, recurrent humanitarian disasters, a predatory Somali state and the effects of a drawn out popular struggle against Mohamed Siad Barre’s dictatorial regime (1969-1991) pushed the Somali economy to the ropes. In the ensuing civil war, Somalia became a haven of terrorist fighters, which ruined the economy, pushed entrepreneurs to exile and forced external financiers to cut ties with a thriving but criminal informal war economy, which financed warlords and extremists. As such, the EU and World Bank disbursements are the latest show of confidence in the government’s reforms and recovery plan.

But the future of Somalia is in the hands of the Somalis. In February last year, the Somali people elected a reformist government with a convincing reform agenda, anchored upon a strong partnership in Villa Somalia between President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo and Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire. Reforms are paying off. In the first quarter of 2018, the government raised $42.5 million domestically, the highest ever in a single quarter.

ADDITIONAL SOMALIA NEWS WILL APPEAR IN THE AFTERNOON REPORT

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