NATIONAL MEDIA
8 September – Source: Halbeeg – 163 Words
Somali President, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo will attend the upcoming 74th United Nations General Assembly Summit which is scheduled to open on 17 September 2019. Somalia’s Minister of Planning and International Cooperation, Gamal Mohamed Hassan, confirmed Farmajo’s planned attendance of the UNGA, at a press conference in Baidoa on Saturday following a high-profile meeting between Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire and representatives of Somalia’s international partners.
This will be the first time that President Farmajo would attend the UN General Summit since he came to office on February 2017. Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire and Foreign Minister Ahmed Isse Awad had represented the country in the UNGA for the past two years. The news of President Farmajo’s planned trip to the United States comes a month after the Head of State of the Horn of Africa nation relinquished his U.S. citizenship. According to the Office of the President, the decision was reached after consultation with legal experts and immigration departments from both countries.
8 September – Source: Goobjoog – 192 Words
The Federal Minister of Finance, Abdirahman Duale Beileh has called on the private sector to intensify its role in boosting the economic growth and development in the country. Addressing a meeting organised by Taaj Money Transfer Service, Minister Beileh emphasized the important role the private sector could play in strengthening the country’s fledgeling economy. “I spoke about the significance of strengthening financial governance to ensure we connect Somalia’s vibrant financial sector to the global financial system,” he stressed. In recent years, the Somali government has been trying to encourage the private sector to increase and expand their production in a bid to contribute more to the rebuilding process of the country.
Following discussions with the sectors, tax agreements have been reached with airlines and telecom companies, giving the government more revenue. Since last year, Somalia has been struggling to win the confidence of the international community to secure lucrative benefits such as debt relief worth $4.6 billion owed to the World Bank, Internationally Monetary Fund and others. The government launched a tax collection campaign as part of efforts to secure millions of dollars in domestic revenues to subsidize its donor-supported budget.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
7 September – Source: UNSOM – 125 Words
The group of Somalia’s international partners listed below* welcome the opening of the Galmudug Reconciliation Conference convened in Dhusamareb. We underscore the importance of an inclusive reconciliation process as an essential step towards the holding of state elections in Galmudug. We welcome the commitment demonstrated by all stakeholders to an inclusive reconciliation process and commend the efforts of the Prime Minister as well as the Galmudug state and community leaders to bring all the communities together for this event. We welcome the agreement to join in the Conference by delegates who travelled to Dhusamareb following the conclusion of their deliberations in Hobyo. We express our hope that the dialogue is fruitful, and that the Conference lays the foundation for a unified and stable Galmudug state.
7 September – Source: UNSOM – 292 Words
Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khayre convened Somalia’s international partners in Baidoa in South West State on 7 September 2019. The participants met to discuss priority areas for national and international engagement as a precursor to the Somalia Partnership Forum to be held in Mogadishu on 1 and 2 October. The delegation delivered messages from AMISOM, Ethiopia, European Union, Germany, Italy, Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD), Kenya, Norway, Sweden, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States and United Nations. The Prime Minister and partners agreed to focus the Somalia Partnership Forum on key priorities for action in order to maximise national and partner efforts and resources. They agreed that these priorities will draw from the roadmaps for reform on Inclusive Politics, Security and Justice, Economic Recovery and Social Development, and that the agreed priorities would be grounded in the partnership principles of mutual accountability. They noted that delivery of the priorities would require urgent steps to strengthen cooperation between the Federal Government of Somalia and Federal Member States.
The partners commended the Prime Minister for his leadership in fostering reconciliation in Galmudug and underscored the importance of pursuing an inclusive approach to reconciliation in all Somalia’s federal member states. They called for ongoing reconciliation and electoral processes in the Federal Member States to be concluded without violence, and in the spirit of dialogue and respect for human rights to ensure all can work together to advance national priorities. The partners expressed their appreciation to South West State President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed “Laftagareen” for the warm welcome and hospitality extended by the people and administration of South West State. They welcomed recent efforts towards reconciliation in South West State and called on all sides to take concrete steps to bring these to a successful conclusion.
6 September – Source: Regionweek – 240 Words
The soldiers of the 48th AMISOM Battalion performed a charity act on Thursday, September 06, 2019, respectively at the Prince Regent Charles Hospital of Bujumbura City Hall and at the Mother Mother of Consolation Orphanage in Bubanza Province. At Prince Regent Charles Hospital, they settled the $ 5,700,000 bill for 7 hospitalized and established indigent patients who ran out of money to pay their bills. The beneficiaries were delighted with this charitable act and thanked these soldiers while asking any charitable soul to help the poor who are not able to pay their bills. After the Prince Regent Charles Hospital, the soldiers of the 48th Battalion of AMISOM also performed a charitable act at the Marie Mère orphanage of the consolation of Bubanza province by granting food aid. According to Lieutenant-Colonel Emery Minani, this aid is the result of the effort of the 48th Battalion of AMISOM of which he is the commander. These soldiers have just returned from their peacekeeping mission in Somalia.
As for the head of this orphanage, Father Justin Banzubaze, he thanked these soldiers for their charitable soul for having lent a helping hand to this orphanage since their work of educating infants is very delicate. He asked them to be ambassadors for this orphanage, especially since they had just seen their daily lives. This orphanage which was born on April 1, 2004, by the idea of Monsignor Jean Ntagwarara, currently hosts 65 orphaned children.
6 September – Source: EUNAVFOR – 441 Words
Last week, EU NAVFOR Somalia Operation ATALANTA provided support to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) vessels that were carrying NGO and United Nations Staff through the Gulf of Aden. The WFP requested support from EU NAVFOR Somalia following the further deterioration of the security situation in Yemen, specifically near the city of Aden. Upon that request, EU NAVFOR Somalia arranged for Operation ATALANTA’s Italian Flagship Antonio Marceglia, to escort the WFP-chartered vessels safely to Djibouti. In addition to deterring piracy and monitoring fishing activity off the Somali coast, one of EU NAVFOR Somalia Operation ATALANTA’s mandated, core tasks is to protect WFP vessels and other vulnerable shipping as they transit the Area of Operations. EU NAVFOR Somalia warships ensure the safe delivery of food aid to Somalia by protecting WFP vessels as they transit through high-threat areas around the Horn of Africa and the Somali Basin. In partnership with the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) and other regional maritime security agencies, EU NAVFOR Somalia protects vulnerable vessels from the dangers of piracy and armed robbery at sea. EU NAVFOR Somalia also embarks Military Armed Security Teams, known as Autonomous Vessel Protection Detachments (AVPDs) onto WFP vessels to act as a deterrent to pirates. Lithuania, Finland, Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro and the Netherlands have provided soldiers for AVPDs in the past, demonstrating their commitment to the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy.
WFP is a key partner for EU NAVFOR Somalia. The work they do in Somalia provides much-needed food aid to people in the region. Earlier this month, the United Nations reported that due to severe, prolonged drought, Somalia is experiencing the poorest cereal harvest the country has seen since 2011. Currently, the UN estimates that in Somalia: Approximately 2.2 million people are severely food insecure, falling under phases 3 and 4 of the five-scale Integrated Phase Classification (IPC). *phase 3 denotes “crisis” situations with high or above-usual acute malnutrition, and phase 4 indicates “emergency” levels of acute malnutrition and high death rates
2.6 million people have been internally displaced and are living in makeshift settlements outside urban areas, facing hunger. One million children will be acutely malnourished over the next year. This includes 180,000 children who are likely to be severely malnourished. Since 2008, EU NAVFOR Somalia Operation ATALANTA has protected 485 WFP vessels and safely delivered 1.8 million metric tonnes of food and aid to people in Somalia. AVPDs, EU NAVFOR warships, maritime patrol aircrafts, local maritime forces and other actors all contribute to a regional, coordinated approach to counter-piracy.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“I want to be a role model for women. Women need the capacity to participate in politics. I pledge that I will train them. I will show them their potential and build their capacity. Women are the backbone of the land and play a very important role in the development of our society.”
5 September – Source: Radio Ergo – 440 Words
The youngest female deputy mayor has been elected to Badhan town council in northern Somalia’s Sanag region. Hawa Mohamud Farah, 26, was elected to succeed the previous deputy, who was also a woman. Nine of the 28 members of the new council are women. Radio Ergo correspondent Mohamed Salah interviewed Hawa Mohamud Farah and asked her first about her background. Deputy Mayor: I was born in 1993 in Badhan town in Sanag region. I did my primary and secondary education at Furqan School and thereafter proceeded to study business administration at the East Africa University in Bossasotown. I have worked as a social worker with humanitarian organisations including ACTED, WFP, and Adeso.
Ergo: You were elected as deputy mayor and you are a young woman. What did it take to win the confidence of the council? Deputy Mayor: Well, I am very happy. I invested a lot of effort in this andI’m pleased that out of 28 councillors, nine of us are women. I was competing against four candidates, all men. I am very happy that I defeated all four men to take up the position. Ergo: You said you have been eyeing the position for a long time, what made you think about it? Deputy Mayor: Yes, it is true, it has been on my mind for a long time to get into a position of power to serve my region, country, and my location. I was motivated by the need to improve the standards of education, to establish more mother and child health posts and equip them. There are already some health facilities but they need to be upgraded. Badhan has no fully equipped MCH. Ergo: What are your priorities now?
Deputy Mayor: Our first priority is full cooperation among the councillors and to win the trust of the people of Badhan. That will make things work. What we want to do includes reforestation and beautifying the district. Our work will not only be in Badhan, but all areas under it will be covered in our development agenda. Ergo: What do you want to achieve for women? Deputy Mayor: I want to be a role model for women. Women need the capacity to participate in politics. I pledge that I will train them. I will show them their potential and build their capacity. Women are the backbone of the land and play a very important role in the development of our society. Ergo: How did your family and the public react to you standing for the post? Deputy Mayor: They were very encouraging. The confidence of my people in Badhan is what has brought me to this position. |
