Archive for Somalia and The Horn

• How can the international community help Somalia move forward?

  By Abdinur Aw Ali* External influences, at the regional and global levels, are playing pivotal roles in Somalia, both in positive and negative ways. And while many Somalis, increasingly believe that left to their own devices, the political/tribal conflict in the country have better chance of been s...

• Press review: Somalia, fighting in the capital and tensions on the borders

  Source: Reuters, NYTimes, The Wall Street Journal Tension is still high in Mogadishu, hardly controlled by the fragile Western-backed administration of President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, where rebels from al Shabaab group attacked government bases and AMISOM peacekeeping troops. An exchange of mortar s...

• Somalia: the regional crisis and the no-win military scenario

  Sources: Guardian.co.uk and International Crisis Group In Yemen, Somalia and beyond, the lawless, strife-torn region has provided disturbing evidence that its myriad problems cannot be ignored and that the west must see the connections between them all. "You could argue that the US intervention in...

• Somali Civil Society Conference in Mombasa

  Source: Hiiraan Friday, December 11, 2009 Communiqué of Mombasa Conference (December 7, 2009) After a long deliberation and sometimes intense discussions in all the above important points, the participants: ·         Condemn tragic incident of December 3rd, 2009 in which high profile...

• Pirate stock exchange helps fund hijackings

  Source: Financial Post According to Mohamed Ahmed, Reuters, in Somalia's main pirate lair of Haradheere, the sea gangs have set up a cooperative to fund their hijackings offshore, a sort of stock exchange meets criminal syndicate.[... ] It is a lucrative business that has drawn financiers from th...

• Somali Diaspora Associations in Italy: between integration and transnational engagement

  by Flaminia Vola Within the framework of the Diaspeace Project, (Diaspora for Peace , case studies from the Horn of Africa) CeSPI (Italian Centre for Political Studies) held a seminar on “Diaspora, Peace and Development in Somalia” in Rome, on November 11. Petra Mezzetti and Matteo Guglielmo f...

• Conflict News: UN calls for multi-level approach in fighting piracy

  Source AFP November 2009 UN - Piracy on the high seas cannot be fought by international naval fleets alone, but requires a regional approach that also deals with its root causes, the UN Special Representative for Somalia said. "Piracy is a highly profitable business, we therefore have to address i...

• Interview with Mohamed Aden Sheikh: Rebuilding Somalia – whose role and responsibility?

  SID Programme Officer Flaminia Vola interviews Dr. Mohamed Aden Sheikh, former representative of the Somali government (1970 - 1982) and active member of the Somali Diaspora in Italy. 1. The Somali Diaspora SID: In respect to the worsening of the crisis in both the political and humanitari...

• Somalia: Donor caution alarms aid workers

  IRIN Africa Aid agencies operating in Somalia say they need more money but that some donors are holding back, concerned at where resources might end up in areas too dangerous for international staff. (…) As of November 2009, total available humanitarian funding for Somalia stands at US$571 millio...

• Somaliland Stuck in International Wilderness

  By Des Carney for International Relations and Security Network - Security Watch Following a plebiscite on a constitution in 2001 and a succession of elections between 2002 and 2005, Somaliland established a constitutional, multiparty democracy to become a political rarity...