July 6, 2016 | Daily Monitoring Report
President Mohamud Extends Eid Al Fitr Message To Somalis
06 July – Source: Shabelle News – 296 Words
The President of the Federal Republic of Somalia H.E. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has extended his warmest greetings to Somalis celebrating Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end to the holy month of Ramadan. “Eid Mubarak!….May your year be full of blessings, peace, justice, development & happiness,” said Somali president in a statement.
The Somali president has also sent condolences to the family and friend of those who lost their loved ones in Al Shabaab attacks in the country during this year. While also speaking about the forthcoming general elections, Mr Mohamud has expressed hope for the 2016 elections, in which he said it will be the 1st election to be held in the country in 47 years.
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud urged the people of Somalia to jointly take part in the upcoming elections due to be held in August, later this year. The planned elections are expected to become a way out for the long-running clan-based power sharing model known as (4.5) as the leaders agreed to hold one-man-one vote elections in 2020,
Key Headlines
- President Mohamud Extends Eid Al Fitr Message To Somalis (Shabelle News)
- Wanlawayn District Gets New Market Solar-powered Street Lights Thanks To Norwegian Funding(Kismaayo News)
- Land Housing Women’s Rights Vital To Somalia Stability: Aid Agency (Xinhua)
- Somali Woman Defying Odds Runs For Top Spot In Next Month’s Polls (The Wilmington Journal)
- Securing Somalia Whatever the Cost (Securing Somalia Whatever The Cost)
PRESS STATEMENT
Special Representative Of The Chairperson Of The African Union Commission Wishes All Muslims Eid Mubarak
06 July – Source: AMISOM – 270 Words
The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Francisco Madeira, wishes all Somali nationals a happy and prosperous Eid al-fitr. Ambassador Madeira thanks all Muslims for their prayers, love and kindness during the holy month of Ramadan.
“Eid al-Fitr marks the end of a holy month of fasting, prayer and spiritual renewal. This time of self-reflection reminds us of the critical values of humankind, among them, charity, mutual tolerance, community, co-operation and compassion,” said Ambassador Madeira. Ambassador Madeira urged Somalis to continue upholding the spirit of love and reconciliation to achieve the common goals of peace, stability and prosperity.
Since 2007, AMISOM has made gains that are helping secure Somalia. Together with the Somali National Army they have pushed Al-Shabaab, the jihadist insurgency group, from all key towns in Somalia. AMISOM is working with the Federal Government of Somalia in strengthening state institutions, ensuring their presence in most parts of the country, including the police and the military, and in empowering the Somali security forces to take over the security responsibility of Somalia.
“I urge all peace-loving Somalis to continue praying for the country and work together with the Federal Government of Somalia and AMISOM to help the country overcome its present predicament and achieve peace and stability,” said Ambassador Madeira.
The forthcoming elections later this year will be a major step forward in the political transformation of Somalia. AMISOM and the international partners will continue supporting Somalia in its effort to achieve the dividends of peace and universal suffrage by 2020. Despite the challenges the country is currently facing, the future is surely bright.
NATIONAL MEDIA
Wanlawayn District Gets New Market, Solar-powered Street Lights Thanks To Norwegian Funding
07 July – Source: Kismaayo News – 91 Words
Lower Shabelle’s Wanlawayn district administration has completed a number of development projects including the construction of government offices and new market including installation of solar-powered street lights. Yusuf Ali Buule, deputy commissioner for security said the projects, aimed at improving the area and expanding social service delivery, were solely funded by the Norwegian government. Some of the local traders thanked the Norwegian government for the funding of the new market construction which they said will hugely contribute to their economy. Solar-powered street lights were also installed to allow traders work during nighttime.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Land, Housing, Women’s Rights Vital To Somalia Stability: Aid Agency
06 July – Source: Xinhua – 440 Words
Land, housing and women’s empowerment are crucial to the stability of Somalia, a report issued on Monday by an aid agency said. The report by the Norwegian Refugee Council says lack of access to land, housing and property, and a lack of women’s empowerment are the two main drivers hampering efforts towards finding durable solutions for displaced communities in Somalia.
The Norwegian Refugee Council’s Regional Director in the Horn of Africa, Gabriella Waaijman, said competition for land and other natural resources were the most significant factors fuelling past conflict and current instability in Somalia. The report received in the Somali capital Mogadishu says women in Somalia are more affected by housing, land and property violations compared to men.
The report identifies challenges displaced women living in urban settlements in Somalia are facing when exercising their rights to access housing, land and property. The report comes at a time when Kenya has decided to repatriate hundreds of thousands of Somali refugees living in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp.
Waaijman said the findings of the report are crucial to the successful reintegration of these communities and Somalia’s future stability. The study reveals that while there are initiatives supporting women’s rights to housing, land and property, many barriers exist, especially those relating to Somali norms regarding the balance of power between men and women.
Somali Woman, Defying Odds, Runs For Top Spot In Next Month’s Polls
06 July – Source: The Wilmington Journal – 376 Words
With the news of terror attacks, the departure of peacekeepers and the proposed eviction of thousands of Somali refugees in neighboring Kenya, it is easy to miss the news of the first woman candidate running to be Somalia’s next president in next month’s national poll. Fadumo Dayib has overcome adversity before. She was the first child of 12 in her family to survive the preventable diseases that carried off her siblings. She was a refugee first in Kenya, then in Finland where she now lives.
But life in a western country gave her a new set of opportunities including a master’s degree from Harvard in Public Administration and one in Public Health. She’s been working on a Ph.D. at the University of Helsinki on women’s governmental participation and empowerment in post-conflict societies.
“If I continue sitting here in the west, in this comfortable place hoping that somebody will drop from the sky with magical solutions for Somalia, that day would never arrive. I will die in this place and my children will never have a country to come back to,” she told the writer Placide Magambo, in an extensive interview.
She said she sees opportunities where others seen endless ruin. “I see people who are proud to call themselves Somalis and who live a dignified existence. If given the opportunity, Somalia would be one of the best countries in Africa, if not in the world. We are a very creative people. We are business-minded people. We are people who can make customs out of stumps if given the opportunity.”
OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE
“AMISOM and its international partners have made great strides in reversing some of the territorial control that Somali militants have enjoyed in recent years. Their efforts have taken pressure off the nascent Somali government, enabling it to proceed with its transition. So regardless of the hardship that budget cuts will cause the mission’s African governments, their interest in Somalia’s success will likely compel them to continue their support for the time being.”
Securing Somalia, Whatever the Cost
05 July – Source: Stratfor – 924 Words
Somalia has posed a key security challenge for the international community in recent decades. Islamic extremism, warlords, famine and piracy have cemented the country’s reputation as a failed state. Since it formed in 2007, however, the 22,000-strong African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) force has helped to stabilize the country, making notable gains against the militant group al Shabaab.
Notwithstanding the force’s successes, the European Union, AMISOM’s largest financial contributor, decided recently to cut funding to the mission by 20 percent. For African member states with troops on the frontlines, the decision has been hard to accept. Reports have circulated that AMISOM soldiers have not been paid in months and likely will not receive wages again until the European Union resumes funding in September.
Now, countries such as Kenya and Uganda have threatened to pull out of AMISOM, and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has vowed that participating African states will not fill the funding gap left by the European Union’s cuts. Despite their grumbling, African member states have too much at stake in war-torn Somalia to leave the country anytime soon.
Money alone does not drive AMISOM. Although the mission’s soldiers receive wages well above the average in their home countries, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Burundi and Djibouti each have other distinct reasons for participating. Ethiopia and Kenya share long, porous borders with Somalia, and both have suffered attacks by al Shabaab. Furthermore, a security vacuum in neighboring Somalia provides a haven for rebels from neighboring countries — such as Ethiopia’s Ogaden militias. This explains why Kenya and Ethiopia have unilaterally intervened in Somalia in the past.
But even countries without borders with Somalia, such as Uganda, have a significant stake in preventing collapse in the Horn of Africa. AMISOM has proved effective in steadying Somalia. Since the mission began, the Somali government and international forces have regained control of most of the country’s urban centers and ports as well as its entire coastline.
TOP TWEETS
@Dahirkulane : @USAIDSomalia Eid Mubarak to all the staff and their families of @USAID #Somalia Mahadsanidiin for helping us rebuild our Nation!
@USAIDSomalia : USAID Somalia wishes you and your families Eid Mubarak. #Somalia
@_hozint : #Somalia SNA regains control of key areas near Baidoa
@cccgaruun : Eid Mubarak to all Muslim peoples, may this eid bring ever lasting happiness to you and your family. #Mogadishu#EidMubarak #somalia
@MogadishuImages: Kids with toy guns & white barbie dolls! They’ve every right to celebrate but what are we teaching them with such toys? #Mogadishu #Somalia
@RwandaInfoEng : #Amisom divisions threaten #Somalia’s fragile stability > http://IGIHE.com English Version
@omabha : How KDF’s entry into Somalia changed security situation in Nothern Kenya – http://Hivisasa.com http://dlvr.it/Lkf6ZW #Somalia
@Vatescorp : #Somalia: President Mohamud recently held first-ever meeting with #Israel PM Netanyahu
IMAGE OF THE DAY
AMISOM wishes you a Happy Eid and may this festival bring all Somalis abundant joy and happiness.
Photo: AMISOM