If you haven’t read the recent speech of Somalia’s Prime Minister, Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, at the Istanbul II Conference, here’s your chance! The Prime Minister highlighted Somalia’s relations with Turkey which date back to the 16th century between Somalia’s Adal Sultanate and the Ottoman Empire. The Prime Minister took the opportunity to speak directly to Somali people all over the globe and set out a vision for Somalia’s future, the obstacles it faces, and the task of rebuilding it. Read the statement here.
The Istanbul Axis Continues: This week Turkey held an international conference on Somalia (“Istanbul II”) with the theme: “Preparing Somalia’s Future: Goals for 2015”. The conference provided the international community with a unique opportunity to adopt common positions on the future of Somalia. It aimed to chart immediate concrete actions in the political, security and economic spheres that will enable a smooth end of transition and the establishment of an inclusive and broad-based political dispensation in Somalia after August 2012. The conference also sought to build consensus on a long-term approach to state-building and economic development, including the evolution of an enabling environment for private investment in the post-transition period. Visit the Conference website here and hear Al Jazeera’s reporting here.
Are you a fan of TEDx Conferences? Watched the countless inspiring, emotional, enduring and educational videos? You’ll be glad to know that TEDx has extended itself to Somalia with TEDxMogadishu whose theme is Rebirth! The Conference is based on the notion that sustained peace is on the horizon with the Somali diaspora returning home and starting businesses and international investors exploring vast opportunities. TEDxMogadishu celebrates the power of ideas to positively change the world by bringing together like-minded people who believe in this mission. If you’re not in Mogadishu today, then visit the TEDxMogadishu website here where you’ll see live Somali speakers sparking deep discussion and connection. This is yet another sign that there is rebirth in Somalia!
Why has the Somali Shilling withstood the tumultuous lack of a central authority of government or banking in the last 20 years, making it an exception to the rule of a paper currency normally taken to be an expression of faith in the government that issues it? Read the latest feature from The Economist here to understand the complexities involved adding to the longevity of the mighty Somali Shilling.
To celebrate International Women’s Day, we highlight Dr. Hawa Abdi, better known as the “Saint of Somalia” as she has been nominated for the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize. Click here to read about Angelina Jolie, the amazing actor and humanitarian as she tells the story of Dr. Hawa Abdi, the inspiring Somali obstetrician whose medical camp in Somalia has literally saved thousands. After hearing about her nomination for the Peace Prize, Dr. Hawa noted that in the last 27 years, she has given Somalis her heart and her soul without losing hope. The Nobel Peace Prize nomination comes at the right time lifting her morale and keeps her hope alive. If she wins the Prize, she hopes to empower Somali women economically and give a home to homeless Somalis. Make sure to look out for Dr. Hawa’s memoir next year! We will share more news about other Somali nominees for example for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Be Inspired! Be Positive! Be Somali!
Turkey continues its commitment to Somalia by starting the first international commercial flight to Mogadishu. Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag of Turkey announced the development this week after arriving in Mogadishu on a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul Ataturk Airport. Somalis can now travel the world again, he said! Check out our features on Turkey’s previous engagement with Somalia here.
If you haven’t heard yet, the world gathered today to support Somalia’s efforts towards peace and prosperity. British Prime Minister David Cameron hosted various dignitaries in London for a conference on Somalia. The conference was an opportunity to find ways to resolve critical issues facing Somalia, including humanitarian, security, and justice issues. More than fifty delegations attended, all echoing the fact that this presented a “turning point” in Somalia’s hard road to establish stability. Mr. Cameron put it best by stating that ”the problems in Somalia don’t just affect Somalia. They affect the whole world”. If you’re curious about the outcome of the Conference, read the final communique for yourself here. The next international meeting on Somalia is scheduled for June in Istanbul, Turkey. Stay tuned!
All eyes are on the London Conference on Somalia as the UK seeks to build consensus on measures to tackle the challenges affecting Somalia on February 23. The international community has made it clear that challenges facing Somalia need to be solved by Somalis. The UK Government is therefore engaging at all levels with Somali authorities, civil society and Somali diaspora. If you haven’t yet participated in the informal debates and the series of events in the run-up to the Conference, you are invited to join others and keep up with news and discussion around the conference by joining Facebook and Twitter (@UKinSomalia), following Twitter hashtag #LDNSomalia. Be Inspired! Be Positive! Be an engaged Somali!
Countless Somalis have left comfortable lives in the West to contribute back to rebuilding their country. Meet Hussein Abdi Dualeh, a former engineer with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority who now heads up the Ministry of Mining, Energy and Water Resources of Somaliland. Hussein managed maintenance contracts for Los Angeles where he lived with his wife and three sons. Today, he’s helps rebuild his homeland and joins others who’ve returned from the United States, the United Kindom and Canada to also run the Ministries of Energy, Information, Planning, Foreign Affairs and Fisheries ministries. To those that say it is too difficult, scary, or there aren’t opportunities, we hope Hussein’s story and that of countless others will inspire you to contribute back. Read more.
Wondering about Somalia’s contribution to the global economy? Visit the Gulf of Aden and see for yourself or read on. In addition to having the longest coast in Africa and 39th in the world, Somalia’s contribution last year was quite enormous. For a start, 23,000 ships transit yearly through the Gulf of Aden which is a vital artery of the global economy with nearly a trillion dollars of trade travelling to and from Europe alone last year. Approximately 11 percent of the world’s seaborne petroleum passes through the Gulf of Aden on its way to the Suez Canal or to regional refineries. For those of you unfamiliar with the geography, the Gulf of Aden is located in the Arabian Sea between Yemen, on the south coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and Somalia in the Horn of Africa. The main ports along the gulf are Aden in Yemen, Djibouti City in Djibouti, and Zeila, Berbera, and Bosaso in Somalia. Next time you’re asked about Somalia’s contribution to the world, we hope you’ll have these facts in hand! Be Inspired! Be Positive! Be Somali!
Heard of Dadaab Complex? How about Dadaab Refugee Camps? This site and many others like it have been intertwined with the lives of Somali refugees and emigrants for over the last two decades. Dadaab is located approximately 100 kilometers from the Kenya-Somalia border and is the world’s largest refugee complex. It consist of Ifo, Dagahaley, Hagadera refugee camps which were constructed in the early 1990s. Dadaab hosts people that have fled various conflicts in the larger Eastern Africa region but until recently the local population traditionally consisted of nomadic Somali camel and goat herders. The camps feature a UN base and the international humanitarian organization CARE is responsible for managing them. Read more about Dadaab here and be inspired by the resilience of all those who shoulder the burden of conflict. Take some time to also check out these aerial images of the camps by renowned photojournalist Brendan Bannon.
Can you remember when you last used the Somali Shilling? The Somali shilling has been the currency of Somalia since 1962. Owing to a lack of confidence in the Somali shilling since 1991, the US dollar is widely accepted as a medium of exchange alongside the Somali shilling. Dollarization notwithstanding, the large issuance of the Somali shilling has increasingly fueled price hikes, especially for low value transactions. This inflationary environment, however, is expected to come to an end as soon as the Somali Central Bank assumes full control of monetary policy and replaces the presently circulating currency introduced by the private sector. Fine out more about the Somali Shilling here and check out the various notes here.
It is not surprising that despite the lack of boats, money and equipment for Somaliland’s coast guard, its efforts to capture pirates are showing results. The international community is spending millions of dollars a day maintaining a fleet of warships to protect key shipping lanes off East Africa to fight back against increasingly brutal pirate attacks. Less well known is the part played by the Somaliland coast guard, working on a meager annual government-paid budget. The 600-strong Somaliland coast guard has captured 84 pirates since 2007, arrested countless illegal fishermen and detained many smugglers. Read more.
Last week, the international community declared an end to famine conditions in Somalia. Though this seems like great news, it also warned that the crisis in the Horn of Africa is not over but requires continued efforts to restore food security and help people resume normal lives. The number of people in need of emergency humanitarian assistance in Somalia has dropped from 4 million to 2.3 million, or 31 per cent of the population! Some much needed news indeed! Read more.
If you were asked to name one country that has consistently shown solidarity with Somalia, could you? That country on every Somali’s lips should be Turkey! We’ve featured the show of solidarity from Turkey’s President last August and the donations from the Turkish people as well as the commitment from Turkey to build another hospital in Somalia, to the point that new born boys and girls were being named after Erdogan and Istanbul!! Read The Guardian newspaper’s view on Turkey’s solidarity here.
