Somalia

In the Federal Republic of Somalia interventions will take place in South Central (Mogadishu) and in Somaliland (Hargeisa).

Priority sectors are:

• Agriculture
• Infrastructure
• Justice

Context

Decades of political, social and economic challenges in the Federal Republic of Somalia have led to critical capacity limitations. National education and knowledge systems have collapsed, aggravated by a massive brain drain. Somalia is now on the path to emerge from fragility. A key milestone is the New Deal Somalia compact, which provides a new political, security and development framework. The Compact presents specific priorities, framed by five Peacebuilding and Statebuilding Goals. These are: 1. Legitimate Politics, 2. Security, 3. Justice, 4. Economic foundations, 5. Revenues and Services.

Past Achievements

Somalia was included in TRQN at the start of the third phase (December 2012). In the past three years 97 assignments have taken place. These assignments took place in South Central Somalia, Somaliland and Puntland. Capacity was built in priority sectors, including education, infrastructure, governance and agriculture.
There proved to be a substantial qualified diaspora community with a Somali background in the Netherlands, consisting of mainly young professionals, who are willing to contribute to the reconstruction and development of the country through short assignments in Somalia.

Sectors and Objectives for next phase

Based on the priorities in the Somali Compact –  and in parallel to other diaspora programs such as MIDA Somalia – the next phase will focus on strengthening the capacities of a limited number of strategic institutions in three sectors in Somalia: security, agriculture and natural resources and infrastructure (PSG 2 “Security” and PSG 4 “Economic foundations”). In many instances over the past years these sectors experienced delivery of weak services. The Institutional capacity development in these areas is undoubtedly critical to the future economic and security performance of Somalia and can help deliver effective sector-wide and national development by stimulating both growth and justice.

1. Somalia has limited institutional capacity to ensure provision of basic security services. This is due, among others, to the lack of fully functioning human resources and financial systems exacerbated by the low number of trained and equipped security officers, judicial and corrections staff, and weak or inexistent oversight bodies. Additionally, continued corruption and impunity and the absence of institutions in remote areas make it very difficult for the State to assert its authority over the country.
2. The economy of Somalia is greatly dependent on natural resources. Livestock is the largest export with charcoal production ranking second. The ecosystems on which the main pastoral and agro pastoral Somali livelihoods depend are continuously weakened and threatened by several threats. These include: overgrazing, deforestation, soil erosion and recurrent droughts. Charcoal production has become a threat to security and stability in the country. Somalia has the longest coast in continental Africa. Consequently, fisheries can also play a crucial role in improving revenues and food and nutrition security.
3. Somalia has a deteriorating infrastructure that has seen little improvement in the last decade. For the fragile Somali context, the infrastructure sector is key for economic recovery, jobs creation and an easier movement of goods and services. In this framework, the need of longer-term public infrastructure and relevant urban planning requires not only creative and innovative efforts but also the provision of high-skilled technical support to the involved institutions and line Ministries. In this regard, the support to the development of relevant policies and transparent regulatory frameworks will facilitate the creation of an attracting environment for public and private investments.

Partners

IOM intends to work closely with the Ministries of Interior, Internal Security, Justice, and Defense and Agriculture within the Federal Government of Somalia. Because of the division of the country in three entities with relative autonomy and the fact that travelling between the different entities poses serious challenges, IOM intends to have TRQN staff in each of the three entities to work with the local counterparts and priority institutions. In this regard, IOM intends to work closely also with The Ministry of Livestock, The Ministry of Agriculture of Somaliland, The Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources of Puntland and key municipalities. Moreover, IOM will closely work with the office of the Diaspora Unit in Somalia to further engage the potential of diaspora for the development of Somali.
IOM will assist key institutions in developing the Theories of Change. These may include: Ministry of Pubic Works and Housing of the Federal Government of Somalia, Ministry of Public Works and Transport, Puntland, Mogadishu and Garowe Municipalities; Road Development Agency of Somaliland, Ministry of Agriculture Of Federal Government of Somalia, Ministry of Livestock of Somaliland, Ministry of Water Resources and Energy of Federal Government of Somalia; Ministry of National Security of Somalia; Somaliland Ministry of Public Works and Housing.

Exchanges to NL remain challenging, (visa issues), but should be further explored, as well as establishing sustainable links between institutions in Somalia and in the Netherlands.