June 21, 2018 | Daily Monitoring Report
More Than 250,000 Refugees Returned To Somalia, UN Says
21 June – Source: The Star – 419 Words
At least 254,811 Somali refugees from Dadaab camp in Garissa have been voluntarily repatriated since 2013, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) has said. The repatriation started after a tripartite agreement between Kenya, the Somalia government and the UNHCR in November 2013.
Speaking during Refugee Market Day in Dadaab yesterday, UNHCR head of operations for Dadaab office Jean Bosco Rushatsi said another 4,949 non-Somali refugees have been relocated to Kalobeyei in Kakuma camp. Rushatsi said their office in Somalia takes charge of the refugees as soon as they cross over the Kenyan border. “The safety of the refugees returning home is our top priority. We have to ensure the returnees are in safe hands at all times,” Rushatsi said. “We are happy we’ve been able to take at least 250,000 refugees back home.”
Refugees destined for Mogadishu and Kismayu were airlifted after bus transport was suspended due to poor roads occasioned by heavy floods along the Dadaab-Liboi-Dhobley road. Al Shabaab militants were frustrating the repatriation via road by planting Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) along the road, a security expert told the Star.
Key Headlines
- More Than 250000 Refugees Returned To Somalia UN Says (The Star)
- Somalia’s President Travels To Addis Ababa For IGAD Summit (Halbeeg News)
- Families In Elbarde Bakool Region Miss Meals As Shilling Loses Value And Food Becomes Short (Radio Ergo)
- One-on-one With UNHCR Special Envoy On Somali Refugees Ambassador Mohamed Affey (Standard Media)
- 12 Al-Shabaab Militants Killed In Offensive In Southern Somalia (Xinhua)
- I’m Ready To Go Rebuild My Country Somali Refugee Says (Daily Nation)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somalia’s President Travels To Addis Ababa For IGAD Summit
21 June – Source: Halbeeg News – 143 Words
President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo travels to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to attend an extra-ordinary IGAD summit on Thursday. President Farmaajo will attend Intergovernmental Authority on Development ( IGAD) summit, which is set to discuss the situation in South Sudan. The summit will be attended by all the members of IGAD.
IGAD summit comes hours after the meeting between President Salva Kiir of South Sudan and rebel leader Riek Machar was held on Wednesday. Details about their talks on Wednesday is yet to be released. President Kiir and his former vice president Mr. Machar met for the first time in two years, in Addis Ababa. A meeting hosted by the new Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
Their meeting comes ahead of June 30 deadline talks between the South Sudanese rivals. President Farmaajo is expected to hold separate meetings with the heads of IGAD member states in Addis Ababa.
Families In Elbarde, Bakool Region, Miss Meals As Shilling Loses Value And Food Becomes Short
20 June – Source: Radio Ergo – 407 Words
A combination of food shortages and the collapse of the Somali shilling, are making life extremely difficult, for the most vulnerable families living in Elbarde, Bakool region. Halimo Hassan Mohamud and her six children are internally displaced in Halul town, after losing their entire herd of 57 goats and 12 cows in the drought.
Halimo told Radio Ergo her casual work of washing clothes help her earned for three days a week 50,000 Somali shillings ($2). The money used to cover two meals per day for the family, but now it does cover even a one meal. “Whenever I am paid in Somali shillings, I keep the worthless Somali shilling notes in the house,” she said. She has asked her employers to send her money to her mobile phone directly.
According to local businessmen, the sudden drastic changes have been caused by the decline in value of the local currency for some time. Traders only want to sell in the US dollar now which means that local people cannot spend their shillings. Shuayb Hassan Mohamed, a businessman, said prices have also skyrocket, partly due to the recent extreme weather conditions.
Vehicles bringing in food supplies to the area are not able to navigate the flooded roads. Usually, three to four vehicles use to bring in food each day, now it is only one single truck arriving in a week. The supply of food has shrunk. A kilo of sugar, flour or pasta used to cost 16,000 shillings ($0.78), and has increased to 40,000 shillings ($1.94), while a litre of cooking oil has risen from 28,000 shillings to 50,000 shillings ($2.40). The IDP families and people on low incomes are struggling to survive.
Mahad Salad Abdullahi, a father of seven in El-Barde, used to sell firewood, he collected on his donkey cart from the outskirts of town. Due to the floods, he can no longer go out to fetch firewood. He told Radio Ergo his family cannot migrate away from the area, since the roads are cut off. They are struggling to have one meal a day, although he occasionally gets five or 10 dollars sent to his phone by relatives. “When I go home my children run to me, they want something to eat. I have asked the business owners to give me food on credit, but they have refused. We don’t cook a meal every day,” Mahad said.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
One-on-one With UNHCR Special Envoy On Somali Refugees Ambassador Mohamed Affey
21 June – Source: Standard Media – Video – 28:39 Minutes
Thousands of refugees have fled violence in neighboring countries entering into Kenya to seek safety. And as the world marks the world refugee day, older refugees are realizing the need for education.
12 Al-Shabaab Militants Killed In Offensive In Southern Somalia
20 June – Source: Xinhua – 236 Words
At least 12 al-Shabab fighters were killed and several others escaped with injuries in a fierce fighting with Somali National Army (SNA) at a location in the southern port town of Kismayo. SNA commander Ismail Sahardid on Wednesday confirmed the Tuesday incident at Bar-Sanguni location, saying the military operation was aimed at liberating more areas still under Al-Shabaab in Lower Juba region.
“Somali National Army conducted military operation against Al-Shabaab at several areas including Bar-Sanguni location in this region on Tuesday and killed 12 terrorists and injured several others during the operation,” Sahardid said. He did not comment on whether there were casualties on SNA side during the operation.
The group’s affiliated media said the al-Qaeda allied militant group killed two government soldiers in the gunfight and resisted attacks from Somali forces. The group claimed that Bar-Sanguni is under the militants’ control now. Independent sources could not confirm the control of Bar-Sanguni location which has been under target by the allied forces.
The U.S. Africa command (Africom) said the incident took place during a joint operation in Jubaland in southern Somalia conducted by combined Somali National Security Forces (SNSF), Kenyan Defense Force (KDF) and the U.S. special forces. The Somali and allied troops have intensified operations in Somalia after the killing of U.S. special operations soldier on June 8. Some four soldiers were also injured in a firefight against the al-Shabab in Bar-Sanguni.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“According to UNHCR, 114,967 children are of school-going age (3-17 years) and constitute half of the population at the camps. Overcrowding is a major challenge to a safe learning environment at the camps and has been cited as one main reason why most students dropout of school.”
I’m Ready To Go Rebuild My Country, Somali Refugee Says
20 June – Source: Daily Nation – 407 Words
Fardowsa Adow Mohamed has not known any other home apart from Hagadera refugee camp since she arrived from Somalia where she was born. She came to Kenya at the age of two due to inter-clan skirmishes in Somalia. As she joins millions of refugees around the globe to mark World Refugee Day, she hopes to return to her country of birth to rebuild the image tattered by years of war.
Ms. Mohamed says she is willing to use the skills she has acquired at Hagadera back in Somalia. The 28-year-old woman started her early childhood education at Hagadera where she also did her primary and secondary school exams and despite difficulties and lack of opportunities, she managed to do well. “I have studied Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) in college where I started with a certificate course and followed by diploma. I am now waiting for my diploma certificate,” she told the Nation.
She is now an ECDE teacher at the same school she went to in what she says is giving back to the community since there are few qualified teachers in the camps. And although the refugees’ agency UNHCR and other partners have employed several teachers, they are not enough, she says. “Refugees are humans being like any other and if given an opportunity they will shine and bring the much-needed change in their home countries,” she said. “I encourage girl, weather refugees or not, to work hard in their studies and make sure they achieve their goals in life. Parents should also give their daughters a chance to study,” she added.
Ms. Mohamed says if she gets a chance to go back to her country, she will concentrate on education and building a strong foundation for children for Somalia to have a better future. At the Dadaab refugee camp, there are 32 pre-school centres, 32 for primary learning and seven secondary school centres. There are also 18 primary accelerated learning centres, three secondary school accelerated learning centres and four vocational learning centres.
According to UNHCR, 114,967 children are of school-going age (3-17 years) and constitute half of the population at the camps. Overcrowding is a major challenge to a safe learning environment at the camps and has been cited as one main reason why most students dropout of school. According to UN agency, due to uncertainties surrounding the closure of the camps, attendance, transition, and completion rates at all level remains another challenge.
TOP TWEETS
@HarunMaruf: Somali regional lawmaker says 19 women have been raped this month along Mogadishu-Baidoa road. Qasim Mogow of Southwest says 11 victims were raped in the same day, June 9. Both Al-Shabab and Govt soldiers control different parts of it, one of the most dangerous roads to travel.
@AnalystSomalia: Conflicting views on donors funds to#Somaliland; to address the REAL issue Somaliland & #Somalialeaders including #Puntland & Sool region communities SHOULD embark on genuine RECONCILIATION to ensure#Somalis do not need donor handouts in the 1st place, #Kenyais a good example.
@taakulosom: By offering rigorous Training and Capacity building to our Health & Nutrition teams,@shf_somalia makes it possible for our teams to handle more patients per given time hence fastening our pace to deliver to those most in need of this services.
@AbdirahmanCumar: Al-Shabab Militant Group Getting Lucky, Not Stronger in Somalia. #Somalia @amisomsomalia@TheVillaSomalia @VOANews @voasomali
@FMakken: Today we organised a farewell lunch for my Dep@tijmenrooseboom in Mogadishu who has energetically promoted Dutch interests in Somalia in the past three years@NLinKenya @UNSomalia @Somalia @MofaSomalia@EUCAPSOM
@engyarisow: Benadir Regional Administration (BRA) welcomes today’s Launching on IDPs/Migration Policy Legal frameworks@Shirwa
@CBSsomalia: Deputy Governor Maryan A Yusf opened one-day workshop held at Central Bank of #Somalia‘s HQ in Mogadishu for senior managements, compliance officers, internal control officers, investment officers and accounting officers of local commercial banks.
@Amb_Saleh: Wanted wajir terror suspect Mumina Eroba surrenders to Csic wajir accompanied by the wife of her wanted terror suspect son Abdiwahab Osman Ahmed.
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Khaire and other government officials attended a town hall meeting held in Norway by Somali Diaspora.
Photo: @SomaliPM