February 27, 2018 | Morning Headlines.
Somali Government Bans Carrying Heavy Weapons In Mogadishu
26 February- Source: Hiiraan Online – 228 Words
The Somali government has issued an ultimatum to the military soldiers based in the outskirt of the capital city not to carry heavy weapons inside the city’s streets. The country’s Security ministry said the Somali National Army (SNA) soldiers from Middle and Lower regions have been directed not to enter the capital with their weapons.
Mohamed Abukar Islow, minister for Security noted that his ministry held talks with top commanders of the Defence forces on the issue to ban heavy weapons in the town.” We want to inform the military soldiers to leave their heavy weapons at their barracks when they are heading to the capital city. We don’t want to see soldiers carrying weapons like machine guns, rocket launchers, motors, those mounted on vehicles like Land Cruisers, which can turn the image of the capital like battlefields,” said Islow.
The directive of the ministry comes a day after twin bomb blasts killed over 25 people in Mogadishu. Last year, Somali Cabinet passed a directive allowing government officials not more than four bodyguards with 4 AK47 rifles. A day after the directive, Prime Minister Hassan Ali Kheire vowed his government would enforce the ultimatum to reduce the number of the heavy weapons in the city. The proliferation of weapons in the capital city has seen a rise in the number of the assassinations and clashes between armed forces.
Key Headlines
- Somali Government Bans Carrying Heavy Weapons In Mogadishu (Hiiraan Online)
- Turkey Eyeing Jubbaland For Investment (Radio Dalsan)
- Hirshabelle Parliament Approves State Finance Act (Jowhar.com)
- Qatar Charity Gives Ambulances To Hospitals In Mogadishu (The Peninsula)
- Job And Pay Gap Between Local Somali Graduates And Diaspora Returnees (Radio Ergo)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Turkey Eyeing Jubbaland For Investment
26 February – Source: Radio Dalsan – 117 Words
A delegation of Turkish leaders led by the Ambassador to Somalia Olgan Bekar held a two-day tour of Somalia’s Jubaland regional state in search of possible investment opportunities in the area. President Ahmed Mohamed Islam “Madoobe” hosted the delegation for two days and held talks on linking Kismayo to Antalya, a Turkish city which shares common features with Kismayo, trade and economic development projects. Madoobe who praised Turkish government for being Somalia’s top development partner encouraged investors to do business in Jubaland saying his administration will guarantee their security. Madoobe also praised the Turkish government for its commitment to support Somalia. Ambassador Bekar pledged a timely follow-up and implementation of the projects proposed by Ankara and Jubbaland.
Hirshabelle Parliament Approves State Finance Act
26 February – Source: Jowhar.com – 105 Words
Hirshabelle MPs have approved the first draft of the State Finance Act. A meeting held in Jowhar chaired by the Speaker of the Parliament, Sheikh Osman Barre Mohamed approved Public Financial Management Act. “49 lawmakers accepted, one lawmaker refused and voted against the act, this bill is valid,” said the Parliament Speaker. Hirshabelle MPs also discussed today several acts including Independent Commissions laws, and the Hirshabelle Armed Forces Charter. Finally, the Speaker of the Hirshabelle Parliament ordered parliamentary committees to do oversight of the executive.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Qatar Charity Gives Ambulances To Hospitals In Mogadishu
25 February – Source: The Peninsula – 367 Words
The Qatar Charity Office in Somalia delivered three ambulances to hospitals in the capital Mogadishu to support health services in a ceremony attended by local ministers and officials, members of the Qatari and other embassies. The ambulances have been provided at a time when many hospitals in Somalia were suffering from a severe shortage in the patient transport services, especially for urgent cases, as many vehicles were not designed to provide first aid, which had maximised the risk to the lives of many patients. The Minister of Health of the Somali Federal Government Dr Fawzia Abikar Nour, the Minister of Planning and Investment of Somalia Jamal Mohammed Hassan, the Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of Qatar in Mogadishu Hassan bin Hamza, the Ambassador of Turkey in Somalia Olgen Becker, several members of the Somali Parliament, officials of the hospital benefiting from the project and the Director of the Qatar Charity Office in Somalia attended the ceremony.
Dr Fawzia Abikar Noor praised the role of Qatar in assisting Somalia, and highlighted Qatar Charity’s humanitarian efforts and contributions to alleviate the suffering of those affected by famine and disasters in all the regions of Somalia, expressing her gratitude for these humanitarian efforts and the effective initiative to revive the normal life in Somalia. For his part, Hassan bin Hamza, hailed the continued Qatari support for the humanitarian cause and praised Qatar Charity’s humanitarian and developmental efforts in Somalia, pointing out that such a project will contribute to the rescue of many lives, and cover a part of the need of hospitals for ambulances.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“The main reason I am not able to secure a job is certainly not because of my knowledge or lack of ability,”
Job And Pay Gap Between Local Somali Graduates And Diaspora Returnees
26 February – Source: Radio Ergo – 424 Words
Young graduates claim they are being overlooked for the best paid jobs in Somalia by employers favouring Somalis returning from overseas with foreign credentials. Most top officials in the federal government, non-governmental organization workers as well as leading business employees have spent time abroad and have foreign passports. The deputy speaker of the Somali parliament, Abdiweli Sheikh Ibrahim Mudey, told Radio Ergo that top officials in different sectors accept the diaspora more readily. Mudey said he has spoken several times to government officials about giving priority to youth who studied under difficult conditions in the country, in order to encourage them.
Sahra Sheik Yusuf, a student of business administration at Mogadishu university, plans to travel overseas after completing her studies in two years, as she has no hope otherwise of getting a job in the country. “I don’t think I will get a job with the government because I don’t have a foreign passport. The government prefers and gives job opportunities to the people from abroad,” Sahra told Radio Ergo. Sahra said the best job vacancies are offered to Somalis living outside the country. The few local graduates that get jobs use their connections or clan affiliations. Even then, local graduates claim, they are paid less than those coming home from abroad. Young people say they are pushed to migrate overseas, often taking very dangerous routes, so they can also get foreign documents to back-up their CVs and stand a better chance in the job market.
Omar Osman Mohamed, who graduated in 2016 in public administration from the University of Somalia, said he has been overlooked seven times after an interview. “Every time I go for a job interview, they tell me they will contact me, but I don’t get any feedback, whether it was success or failure,” he said. He is convinced that young people studying in Somalia are being discriminated against in the job market. “The main reason I am not able to secure a job is certainly not because of my knowledge or lack of ability,” he added. Omar knows university peers who decided to migrate to optimize their job chances, hoping to come back with foreign papers from Norway, Sweden and Denmark. The permanent secretary of the ministry of labor and social affairs in Somalia, Said Ahmed Mire, denied that there was any preference given to diaspora Somalis in government posts. He said priority was given to who studied in Somalia. Without giving any statistics, he said there are many employees working in government offices with local qualifications and papers.