PILAR 3: SOMALIA AT PEACE WITH ITSELF
3.1 Genuine & Comprehensive Reconciliation
Building on lessons learned from our complicated past, the new government aspires to address the causes of the prolonged conflicts, mistrust, and polarization that has ensued for so long in the country and aims to foster a conducive environment that promotes unity among the people by enabling comprehensive reconciliation through amicable settlements.
“This government is committed to adopting a political framework that is based on the principles of reconciliation, inclusivity, and unity so that we attain political stability and peacefully co-existing communities.”
Notwithstanding that the Somali people have become weary of the civil unrest and recurrent conflicts and have made tremendous progress in bringing citizens closer, it is necessary to continue the journey of civil reconciliation to foster unity and public solidarity in the face of the21st-century challenges. The realization of this is required to attain political stability, security, and development of our country.
Therefore, this government is committed to adopting a political framework based on reconciliation, inclusivity, and unity principles to foster social cohesion and political stability. We are also committed to finding the political resolutions that will fundamentally address the challenges facing our nation and are the cause of protracted conflicts, hostilities, and instability.
Strategic Priorities:
- Implement National Strategy for Comprehensive and Genuine Reconciliation
- Accelerate the deepening of Federalization and Decentralization
- Resumption of the Somaliland reconciliation talks.
- Democratization and acceleration of Good Governance
- Acceleration of National Identification & Civil Registration Authority
- Harmonization of the National Electoral Process and frameworks
- Review and finalization of the Provisional Constitution.
- Implementation of the Multiparty System.
- Commission of One Person and One Vote
- Finalization Of The Constitutional Review Process
One of the core priorities of this government is to finalize the country’s provisional constitution and to accelerate this overdue, the government; will create a conducive environment that enables political leaders at both levels (Federal and state) and including the inter-ministerial bodies and commissions, to convene and pursue constitutional finalization discussions.
Moreover, consultation meetings will be held to seek the input of different sections of Somali society.
Most importantly, concerning the critical constitutional issues pending political settlement, the government is committed to facilitating the necessary deliberations and negotiations and will initiate a comprehensive and inclusive consultation process. Through this approach, the government aims to draft a finalized constitution whose content, the relevant stakeholders in Somalia endorse script and wording.
Strategic Benchmarks:
- Convene regular National Consultative Council meetings
- Restructuring and the formation of the Independent Constitutional Review and Implementation
- Putting in place a unified and comprehensive plan for finalizing the constitutional review
- Organize a conference to present and validate the comprehensive plan for finalizing the constitutional review process.
- To endorse and approve the technical review of the constitution
- Initiate discussions on the technical review of the contentious issues in the body that require negotiation and political
- Adopt a timeframe for the constitutional review process work plan and settle the constitutional referendum
- Awareness raising and sensitization of the new Constitution to the general public at the Federal, State, Local, and Village
3.3 Accelerating the Federalization and the Decentralization Process
The government envisions replicating an inclusive governance system that brings services and decision-making closer to the local people. Although we adopted federalist systems, we are yet to complete the policies and regulatory frameworks necessary for the implementation of an effective federalization process for the country, the lack of regulatory frameworks has led to lingering conflicts between the two tiers of the Government and within the Federal Member States, further hindering the ability of government institutions to provide people with vital essential services.
Despite adopting the federalist system two decades ago, the system still feels new to so many of us partially because our current legal and regulatory framework is based on the past’s unitary governance. For federalism to be effective, we need political and legal settlement to reach an agreement on the management and administration of security, judiciary, revenue allocation, resources management, and decision-making on various projects that affect the public interest at the national, regional, district, and village levels.
Therefore, this government will facilitate regular National Consultative Forum meetings (NCC) to establish a decentralized and inclusive governance system built on broad consensus. These meetings will provide the necessary platform to address and clarify contentious issues, coordinate tasks assigned to different ministries at both levels of the government and facilitate all technical aspects that require alignment.
Strategic Benchmarks
- National Consultative Council meetings are convened
- Review the Independent Commission on Federalization and Borders and the Constitutional Review
- Foster Robust Economic Growth and Administrative Capacity of the Federal Member States (FMS).
- Accelerate the formation of local councils through local government elections.
- Decentralize the provision of Public Services closer to the local
- Strengthen the cooperation between the Federal Government, the Federal Member States (FMS), and Banadir Regional
- Drafting and Adopting the Bill for the Commission of Coordination of the Governments.
3.4 Negotiations With Somaliland
This government’s priority is to accomplish an agreement on a united Somalia through reconciliation. The unity of Somalia country is sacrosanct, and we all have to preserve the unity and fraternity of the Somali people. Therefore, to fully realize the united Somali Republic at peace with itself, the Government will resume and accelerate talks with Somaliland. These talks will be built on goodwill and foster trust and confidence by considering previous mutual understandings and agreements.
Strategic Benchmarks:
- Develop a national plan to steer the negotiations with Somaliland brothermen.
- Accelerate the Somaliland
- Finalize and implement previously agreed MoUs and principal agreements.
- DEMOCRATIZATION.
Popular elections were last held in Somalia in 1969. Since then, the country has undergone varying phases, including military rule, civil unrest, statelessness, transitional administrations, and indirect elections. The prolonged 2020-2022 electoral transition has also revealed valuable lessons.
The Government is committed to holding timely, accessible, and fair popular elections at multiple locations, including the federal, state, and district levels.
We will start by addressing the multifaceted hurdles impeding the implementation of a one-person, one-vote electoral model, including civil registration, conducting a census, harmonizing the country’s electoral processes, and successfully adopting a multi- party system.
To this end, this government will focus on holding comprehensive consultations with broad participation by the Somali public to foster greater consensus. The government will also work on creating an enabling and cohesive environment in which free and fair elections can be held.
Strategic Priorities:
- Conducting free and fair, one-person, one-vote elections that foster political stability at all levels of the
- Operationalization of the National Identification & Civil Registration Authority.
- Implementation of Multi-party
- Promotion of Democratization and Good
- Harmonization of the country’s
Electoral Processes.
- We are conducting a national