NATIONAL MEDIA
4 July – Source: Halbeeg – 273 Words
Somali Interior ministry will organize and supervise the upcoming leadership elections in Galmudug state, the state confirmed. In a statement, Galmudug President, Ahmed Guale Haf said the ministry will implement and lead the electoral process of the state. The leader also stated that the ministry will spearhead the reconciliation process of the state. “The processes of reconciliation and elections will be carried out by the interior ministry of the Federal government of Somalia on behalf of Galmudug state,” the statement reads in part.
President called on the various departments of his government to carry out their daily duties until the transitional period comes to an end. The Somali government is brokering dialogue to mediate leaders of Galmudug state and end the political crisis that engulfs the state. The development comes barely hours after the international community welcomed the efforts by the Somali government.
In a statement. the envoys based in Mogadishu have commended the efforts to bring parties together for the benefit of its people and the whole of Somalia. The ambassadors were from Belgium, Denmark, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the European Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the United Nations, as major international partners of Somalia.
“We encourage all stakeholders to continue these endeavors and to take forward broad-based and inclusive reconciliation, leading to the transparent and fair selection of a new Parliament and President, free from violence,” the statement reads in part. “We reaffirm our support for Somalia.” Galmudug is expected to hold leadership elections in the forthcoming months.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
4 July – Source: Radio Ergo – 555 Words
In this week’s report from Somalia’s IDP camps, Radio Ergo visits Nasa-Hablood camp near Hargeisa, where destitute former pastoralist families face a lost past, an empty future, and constant threats of eviction from landowners. Fear and anxiety haunt the displaced pastoralist families in Nasa-Hablood camp, on the outskirts of the Somaliland capital Hargeisa, after losing their past livelihoods and facing eviction any day.
“The only thing we can think about is where we will go to next and where our children will live,” said Halimo Jama Awale, who is sleeping rough in the open with her six children, worrying when the landowners will come again with threats. “They visit us all the time. I can’t defend this land we have lived on, I don’t know what to do,” she told Radio Ergo. Halimo has piled up the sticks and cloths that used to form the structure of her hut. She took the family shelter down when she received the first eviction notice last month. The second notice came when she woke one morning to find construction materials dumped beside her hut.
Around 35 families have already been forced to leave one section of the camp, which is being eyed for development, as the city of Hargeisa expands towards the outskirts. Some of them moved onto another piece of privately owned land five kilometres away, whilst others went further away to a piece of open scrubland. Halimo has lived in Nasa-Hablood for six years. The family moved from Dabagoroyale, near the Ethiopian border, after all their livestock died in the drought. “If I get a piece of land I would focus on earning a living and my children would live a better life. I cannot afford to rent a house in town,” she said.
Unfortunately, Halimo’s source of income has been disrupted. The landowners barred the women who were digging stones to grind into the gravel from damaging the land. They have earned nothing for the last three months. They are depending on food handouts, help from their relatives, or on their husbands if they have one.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“…The sector needs to come up with measures that can assist with those risks. What has been happening over the last five to six years is agencies have become too risk-averse. This then compromises our ability to work and support people who are affected by humanitarian crises. It might be that some agencies decide not to go into a specific area, [for example].”
4 July – Source: DEVEX – 1129 Words
Accessing populations is a major challenge for the humanitarian sector in parts of Somalia. Widespread insecurity threatens the safety of aid workers, and can limit the ability to show accountability for funding. But some are asking whether humanitarians — and the donors funding them — have become too risk-averse, leaving huge swaths of the population unable to access aid, and encouraging movement to internal displacement camps where people can remain for long periods of time. For example, a widespread scale-up of humanitarian aid in 2017 was credited with averting famine in the country, but was largely limited to government-controlled and often urban areas because of “risks related to accountability for funds,” according to an analysis commissioned by the Somalia Inter-Agency Cash Working Group.
Oversight of aid distributed in hard-to-reach areas can be challenging. Some thought “the humanitarian community could have tried harder but were too risk-averse,” the analysis stated. The country is now, once again, facing widespread food insecurity following poor rains. Devex sat down with Abdi-Rashid Haji, country director for Concern Worldwide, to discuss the challenge of managing risk in Somalia. He suggested working with local NGOs, which have better access to areas across the country and recommended honest conversations with donors about expectations.
That’s been the case. Agencies are trying to stay away from risks that might affect their funding and relationships with donors. In south-central Somalia there are many risks and you cannot avoid all of them. Some risks are manageable, and some risks are not 100% manageable. But there needs to be a willingness to engage with the situations and identify exactly what those risks are. Then, the sector needs to come up with measures that can assist with those risks. What has been happening over the last five to six years is agencies have become too risk-averse. This then compromises our ability to work and support people who are affected by humanitarian crises. It might be that some agencies decide not to go into a specific area, [for example].
There is also the pattern of spending too much time trying to ensure that everything is 100% secure. That can delay the delivery of humanitarian assistance. I think anybody working in these contexts needs to accept the reality that you can’t be 100% risk-averse. It’s a difficult scenario, though, for the humanitarian sector — moving forward on programming despite the risks? It’s about accepting the new reality in Somalia. It’s not a stable country … If you are not accepting that reality, go somewhere else. Also, be genuine in terms of what you can do and what you can’t.
One example is the selection process for beneficiaries. You can use community structures, not only NGOs or U.N. agency staff. There are trusted people in the community, like women self-help groups, education committees and teachers, respected village elders, Islamic scholars, farmers associations, among others. You work with them to identify families that are very vulnerable. Also, don’t expect a 100% success rate. Even if you get 70%, that’s success. Be genuine, go back, explain this to your donors. When it comes to donors, it’s about continuously educating them on the situation and also being open and transparent on how to improve accountability….. |
