By Goth Mohamed Goth
Hargeisa – Daami Youth Development Organization officially opened a two-day Digital Security & Resilience Training for 50 participants from different CSOs on 5-6 May 2026, in Burao at D-Dahab Hotel targeting civil society networks and aimed at strengthening the safety, resilience, and operational capacity of civil society organizations (CSOs), human rights defenders (HRDs), journalists, community-based organizations, and vulnerable minority groups.
The training is being implemented under the Hivos Project and is facilitated by a Digital Security Specialist, providing participants with practical and context-sensitive knowledge to address the growing digital risks faced by civil society actors. As organizations increasingly depend on digital tools for advocacy, documentation, and service delivery, the training focuses on threats such as surveillance, phishing, account hijacking, data breaches, online harassment, and doxxing—risks that disproportionately affect vulnerable and marginalized communities. 
Capacity Building and Digital Resilience Training for minority and youth rights defenders equips activists with the skills to navigate online threats, counter disinformation, and safely document human rights violations. Core modules typically cover threat modeling, secure communications, digital rights advocacy, and psychological well-being.
In his welcoming remarks, Mr. Mahmoud Abdi , the Director of Daami Youth Development Organization underscored the urgency of building digital resilience among civil society networks, particularly those working with vulnerable minority and other marginalized led organizations. He noted that digital security is essential not only for organizational protection but also for safeguarding beneficiaries, sensitive data, and community trust.
Mr. Mohamud also addressed participants, emphasizing the critical role of youth-led and network-based organizations in mainstreaming digital security practices across their work. He encouraged participants to integrate digital safety measures into organizational policies and daily operations.
The executive director of the Daami Youth told participants, “As we live in the digital age, Cybersecurity is a plan that requires a set of practices, tools, infrastructure, and most importantly qualified human resources specifically trained for the purpose. In contemporary times, every government and private sector needs to invest in securing its vital data as a nation as well as the data and identity of each and every one of its citizens. This requires an internal technical capacity building at the government level, but also developing rules and regulations to govern the IT security.
