Nairobi, October 22, 2012-Somali authorities must investigate the shooting of a journalist for a national broadcaster, identify the motive, and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Two gunmen shot Mohamed Mohamud Turyare, reporter and website editor for the Shabelle Media Network, after he left a mosque in the Hawo Tako neighborhood in the Wadajir district of Mogadishu at around 6 p.m. on Sunday, according to local journalists and news reports. Mohamed was hospitalized for gunshot wounds in his chest and abdomen, the journalists said.
Government security personnel in the area returned fire, causing the assailants to flee, local journalists said, citing eyewitnesses. The journalists told CPJ that authorities had not yet ascertained the perpetrators or the motive behind the attack.
“This has been an exceptionally dangerous year for Shabelle Media Network journalists and the Somali press in general,” said CPJ East Africa Consultant Tom Rhodes. “The ongoing attacks against journalists show the government has yet to secure Mogadishu and make it safe for the press and other democratic institutions. Media outlets must also do everything they can to ensure the safety of their staff.”
At least 10 journalists have been killed in Somalia so far in 2012, seven in the capital, according to CPJ research. Among the fatalities are three Shabelle Media journalists, CPJ research shows. In January, unidentified gunmen killed Hassan Osman Abdi, the former Shabelle director. Two months later, three assailants shot dead Mahad Salad Adan, a 20-year-old Shabelle correspondent, near his home. In May, four gunmen killed Shabelle presenter and producer Ahmed Addow Anshur in a market in Mogadishu. Authorities have not brought to justice any of the perpetrators responsible for these murders, CPJ research shows.
Somalia ranks second worldwide on CPJ’s Impunity Index, which spotlights countries where journalists are murdered regularly and killers go free.
· For more data and analysis on Somalia, visit CPJ’s Somalia page here.
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CPJ is a New York-based, independent, nonprofit organization
Charcoal-powered coffee machine – living in a recovering failed state like Somalia means being innovative
At The Village Restaurant, a popular open-air hangout for Mogadishu’s returning diaspora community, a charcoal-powered Italian espresso machine brews Somalia’s best cappuccino.
Wi-fi internet beams throughout the cafe, as patrons check email, download music videos, and keep tabs on Somalia’s latest news.
As Mogadishu shifts from two decades of civil war to a quivering democracy, opportunities for business – from hotels to off-grid espresso makers to cafes like the Village – are flourishing. And so too are the opportunities for bringing them online.
Perched between the tattered ruins of a flattened landscape, the glow of wireless receiver antennas has gradually replaced the orange glow of stray bullets, bringing a new era of global connectivity and freedom of information to the city’s estimated one million residents.
In 2000, Somalia was one of the last African nations to get online. Since then, the internet industry here has seen as much turbulence and turnover as the country itself.
Many Somalis and people of Somali descent who have been living outside the country as part of the global diaspora community are returning to the troubled state to open new businesses
According to Abdulkadir Hassan Ahmed, general manager of Global Internet Company, Somalia’s largest internet provider, at least 17 internet companies in Somalia have gone under in the past decade.
“It’s a tough job,” Mr Ahmed says. “All the time, companies are coming in and going out.”
Global Internet Company, founded in 2003 by a consortium of Somalia’s leading telecom companies including Hormuud and NationLink, provides dial-up, DSL and some point-to-point wireless.
Yet even Mr Ahmed admits his own company’s connections can be slow and expensive. After nearly 10 years in business, Global Internet is almost profitable, he says, but is more of a loss leader for telecoms.
Unlike Somalia’s thriving telecoms sector, where two decades of lawlessness, lack of regulation, and cut-throat competition for an increasingly mobile market have driven services up and prices to rock bottom (less than one cent per minute), internet in Mogadishu has been archaic.
Dial-up is the cheapest option, at around USD$30 a month per computer, but is painfully slow – less than 56kbs – and highly oversubscribed, according to many.
Direct satellite subscriptions cost as much as USD$3,000 per month for one-megabyte connections, and can be unreliable.
‘Top dollar’
Yet with increased security, things are turning around.
“People used to complain that ‘Mogadishu has no internet’,” says Liban Egal, an American-Somali and founder of Somalia Wireless, Mogadishu’s newest wireless internet provider.
Internet penetration in Somalia still stands at just 1.14% of the population – but as the infrastructure improves that is expected to rise sharply
“It’s not that there wasn’t internet,” Mr Egal explains, “It’s that you couldn’t get what you wanted out of it.”
Somalia Wireless, which launched in April, hopes to find the middle ground in this Mogadishu market, by offering both pooled (shared) and dedicated connections.
“We are trying to build an infrastructure for internet connectivity in Mogadishu,” says Omar Osman, Somalia Wireless’ chief executive, by first “focusing on organisations and institutions that can pay top dollar” and eventually moving down the pyramid to offer a broader base of customers cheaper, faster and better internet.
According to Mr Osman, Somalia Wireless’ hotspots now cover nearly 40% of the city, connecting universities, NGOs, hotels, news agencies and cafes. The company broke even last month.
Internet penetration in Somalia still stands at just 1.14% of the population – on par with Afghanistan – but demand in Mogadishu is growing rapidly.
“Demand is increasing by the day,” says Mr Ahmed. In today’s Mogadishu, he says you need internet “like you need food”.
For the burgeoning private sector and a youth finding themselves free from the social constraints of al-Shabaab, connecting the city is key for growth. Local entrepreneurs are already taking advantage of Mogadishu’s new broadband access.
A report by Somali Telecommunication Association (STA), in 2006, stated that the country had more than 234 cyber cafes, growing at a rate of 15.6% per year. One can only guess the number in Mogadishu today.
In September, brothers Ali Hassan, 20, and Mustafa Yare, 22, opened Kobciye Internet Coffee, a sweltering tin-roofed internet cafe with eight computers, and a deal from Somalia Wireless.
Mustafa Yare & his brother Ali Hassan’s business is doing well – welcoming around 40 customers day
They are part of a shared wireless “pool” with nearby offices, and their bandwidth increases in the afternoon when offices close.
“I wanted a business,” Mr Hassan says, “and this is something that I’m good at, I have skills in computers and IT.”
Youth unemployment stands at 75% in Somalia, so any job is a good job.
The cafe costs around USD$600 (£373) a month to run, with electricity accounting for nearly half of expenditure. Still, the brothers managed to eek out just under USD$1,000 (£624) from their 40 or so daily customers – enough to keep things running for another month.
Most people, Mr Hassan says, “come for Facebook”.
Facebook has taken off in Somalia since Islamic militants al-Shabaab fled the city several months ago, loosening social restrictions and making the streets safer.
New accounts have grown by 50% in the past six months, and there are now more Facebook users than estimated internet users in Somalia, thanks to mobile phones and computer sharing.
Safia Yasin Farah, a young Somali-Canadian who now works with the Centre for Research and Dialogue (CRD) in Mogadishu, says Facebook allows Somalia’s youth to express their opinions freely, without being afraid.
“Many are illiterate, but are actually learning through Facebook,” she adds.
Young ambition
Dr Abdirizak Ahmed Dalmar, president of Benadir University, one of dozens of private universities in the capital, recalls his first day teaching in Mogadishu a few years ago.
“When I finished my first lecture, one student came to me and said ‘can you give me your email’, another one said ‘which website can I go on’.
“And then I saw them playing with their mobiles, Facebook pages, etc. I know these youth have the same aspirations as any youth anywhere in the world. They just need the opportunity.”
With donor funding Benadir University set up its own satellite system, with facilities for video-conferencing with partner universities abroad.
But six months on, that funding has run out, and Benadir cannot pay the $3,000 per month fee. So a deal was struck with Somalia Wireless, who have installed a receiver antenna on their roof.
‘We are ready’
For Mogadishu, wireless broadband is just the beginning.
A few hundred kilometres off the coast three fibre optic cables, already fuelling Kenya’s tech boom, lie waiting to be connected.
But security has been an enormous challenge. With pirates still controlling the seas, no one has been willing to cover the cost of insurance to bring the cables to Mogadishu.
Many of Somalia’s telecom companies are hedging their bets on the future of fibre in Mogadishu.
“In the next six months, we’ll start building the local loop for fibre,” says Mr Egal. According to him, it will cost around USD$1,500 (£936) per kilometre in Mogadishu, an investment he’s willing to make.
Mr Ahmed, of Global Internet, says his company’s involvement in fibre depends on how the government regulates it.
“If there’s room for private sector,” he says, “we are ready.”
Yet it is a risky investment.
Somalia’s first real government in 22 years is now being tested, and though Mogadishu’s long-time residents and returning members of the Somali diaspora alike are incredibly optimistic, the city has virtually no infrastructure, and still very little regulation.
Even without government support, however, Somali innovation, like an espresso maker designed to foil the city’s power outages, will help the city lurch forward.
“The more peace we get”, Somalia Wireless’s Omar Osman explains, “The bigger and more advanced technology we can offer to our people.”
And high-speed internet, even more than espresso, will help stimulate Mogadishu’s recovery.
Nairobi- Somali pirates are still holding 11 foreign vessels for ransom with 167 crew members as hostages as of Sep 30 even as the number of ships signaling attacks by Somali pirates has fallen to its lowest since 2009, a global maritime organization said Monday.
A report from the International Chamber of Commerce, International Maritime Bureau (IMB) released Monday said 21 kidnapped crew members are being held on land and more than 20 hostages have now been held for over 30 months, reported Xinhua.
“It’s good news that hijackings are down, but there can be no room for complacency: these waters are still extremely high-risk and the naval presence must be maintained,” said IMB director, Captain Pottengal Mukundan, in a statement sent to Xinhua.
Demanding millions of dollars in ransom for captured ships and their crews, Somali pirates had late last year intensified operations not just off their own coastline, but further afield in the Red Sea, particularly during the monsoon season in the wider Indian Ocean.
Tankers carrying Middle East oil through the Suez Canal must pass first through the Gulf of Aden. According to maritime officials, about four percent of the world’s daily oil supply is shipped through the gulf.
The attacks are being carried out by increasingly well-coordinated Somali gangs armed with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, maritime officials said.
The drop in Somali piracy has brought global figures for piracy and armed robbery at sea down to 233 incidents this year — the lowest third quarter total since 2008, according to IMB.
According to IMB, that has monitored world piracy since 1991, in the first nine months of 2012, there were 70 Somali attacks compared with 199 for the corresponding period in 2011.
“And from July to September, just one ship reported an attempted attack by Somali pirates, compared with 36 incidents in the same three months last year,” the report showed.
IMB said policing and interventions by international navies are deterring pirates, along with ships’ employment of best management practices including the use of armed guards and other onboard security measures.
“We welcome the successful robust targeting of Pirate Action Groups by international navies in the high risk waters off Somalia, ensuring these criminals are removed before they can threaten ships,” said Mukundan.
He however warned seafarers to remain vigilant in the high-risk waters around Somalia, the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. Meanwhile, violent attacks and hijackings are spreading in the Gulf of Guinea.
Worldwide this year, pirates have killed at least six crew and taken 448 seafarers hostage. The IMB Piracy Reporting Centre recorded that 125 vessels were boarded, 24 hijacked and 26 fired upon. In addition, 58 attempted attacks were reported.
MOGADISHU — The Somali Football federation officials asked the African Union peacekeepers in Somalia (AMISOM) to vacate the country’s largest football facility Stadium Mogadishu during an official visit to the site on Monday.
Somali Football Federation president Ali Said Guled Rooble and Secretary General Abdi Qani Said Arab held a lengthy meeting with the commander of AU peacekeepers stationed at Stadium Mogadishu Captain Angua and other military officials during which they discussed on the possibility of AU troops to withdraw from the facility.
“Today we are at stadium Mogadishu on an official visit which has two main objectives, one was to assess and know the real situation of the stadium and the other was to ask the African Union peacekeepers to vacate from the stadium so that we can host the next edition of regional football tournament for peace and development here by December this year” Somali Football Federation Secretary General Abdi Qani Said Arab told the media during the visit.
“In December 2010 we held the first edition of regional football tournament in more than 20 years and that tournament had yielded positive results in terms of disarming child soldiers, creating friendship among people and spreading football throughout the country” the secretary General said adding that the tournament also helped people who lived in regions controlled by hostile warlords or opposing Islamist groups get a chance to cross from region to region.
The Somali Football Federation officials demanded the AMISOM officials in the meeting to vacate the facility and help the SFF accomplish its duties at the stadium in a bid to help the football-crazy Somali people get a chance to come and watch matches there after many years of absence.
Secretary General Abdi Qani Said Arab told the media that at the end of the lengthy meeting Captain Angua who commands the AU troops at Stadium Mogadishu told them they can pay visit to the facility any time they need, but told they cannot hold any football competitions there.
“This is time to get the Somali soccer facilities back to the SFF hands, because our football is now recovering from years of conflicts and all soccer facilities must get back to our hands” SFF secretary General Abdi Qani Said Arab told the media
“We are really very happy with your arrival here at Stadium Mogadishu, but what I can tell you is that the stadium cannot host any competitions at the present moment because it is currently a military ground and our withdrawal from here depends on the Somali government and the top AMISOM commander’s acceptance—I cannot say about any withdrawals now” Captain Angua told the visiting Somali Football Federation officials.
The president of Somali Football Federation Ali Said Guled Roble who talked to the media during the visit thanked the AU troops for the high level reception. The president said that his federation intends to host the country’s regional football tourney for peace and development by December this year.
Stadium Mogadishu was built for Somalia by Chinese government in 1978 and one time it was the largest and the most beautiful facility in Africa and the Arab world. It hosted many international competitions including All Arab games, All African games, the CECAFA tournament and many others.
For the past 22 years of lack of a functioning government in Somalia, stadium Mogadishu has experienced the most difficult times yet and it several times changed into military compound for foreign troops in Somalia.
In 1993 the facility was occupied by the US peacekeepers who operated in Somalia early 1990s.
In January 2007 Stadium Mogadishu fell into the hands of Ethiopian forces who were based there until they withdrew from Somalia early 2009. It then fell into the hands of notorious Al-shabaab fighters who used it as a training base before they were forced out of capital by Somali government forces and AU troops in August 2011. Since last year stadium Mogadishu has been house to thousands of African Union peacekeepers helping the fragile Somali government.
MOGADISHU — Somalia’s Banadir State government on Tuesday unveiled plans to renovate one of East Africa’s largest open air markets after two decades of closure.
Mohamed Yusuf Osman, Spokesman of Banadir government, told local media in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, that plans to rebuild the Hamarweyne Market were well underway.
Mr. Osman further revealed that a lottery for the allotment of some thousands of plots has been postponed until the 25th of this month. He urged applications to bring their documents with them on next Thursday when the lottery will be drawn in City Plaza Hotel. He blamed the delay on technical issues but promised to resolve it.
All applications are believed to have deposited undisclosed amount of money in the prime location.
The market was constructed by Somalia’s last central government under General Mohamed Siad Barre in 1981 and was one of the largest open air markets in East Africa.
Once reopened the market will be able to supply goods to as far as landlocked Burundi and Rwanda.
August 2012 saw Somalia’s first parliament since 1991 inaugurate in Mogadishu, bringing the war torn country one step closer to pivotal change. With its newly elected parliament, potential for change has never been higher. This change is assisted by Somalia’s vast oil reserve which is promising for the world’s 6th poorest country and it has predictably caught the attention of the international community who are all contending to assert their diplomatic presence in Somalia. It is no secret Somalia’s natural resources have been eyed by the international community for a long time. In fact the first ever oil well was drilled in British Somaliland in 1912 before World War 1. This was unfortunately an unsuccessful operation due to the lack of technology which left the Colonial Brits disappointed and disinterested, ultimately leading to consequential independence of British Somaliland several years later. This is quite ironic since Britain is once again leading the dash to explore Somalia’s oil. Canadian company African Oil estimated that ‘4bn barrels (about $500bn worth at today’s prices) are allocated in the two drilling plots in Putland Somalia. Other surveys indicate that Puntland province alone has the potential to yield 10bn barrels, placing it among the top 20 countries holding oil. Somalia’s This is nothing in comparison to Somalia’s offshore, as its estimated to holds more than 110bn barrels of oil which accordingly makes Somalia the 7th largest oil rich nation in the world. This brings fresh questions to whether the oil deals will benefit the Somali people or whether Somalia will go down Nigeria’s root of mainly benefiting the statesmen and oil companies. This discovery could very well trigger a momentous push to a lasting solution to Somalia’s problem, in that Somalia could find stability through wealth but it could as easily lead to more mayhem.
The logical assumption would be that Somalia’s control over the 7th largest oil would surely meet the needs and improve the lives of its 10 million citizens. However this might not be the case; if we take into consideration the long and extensive history of governmental violations as Somali politicians have long been involved in filling their pockets with capital, mainly from foreign aid. The UN has said that $7 out of every $10 of international aid ended up lining some power brokers pocket. The consequence is that 70% of money donated never made it into public coffers in 2009 and 2010. The chance that oil revenues will change the unofficial motto of “What’s in it for me?” is doubtful. The new parliamentary speaker being Mohammed Sheikh Osman Jawar an Islamist lawyer who was a minster under the dictator Mohammed Said Barre in the 1980’s isn’t reassuring either. A minister for a regime that allocated two-thirds of Somalia’s oil to American Oil giants, Conoco, Amoco, Chevron and Phillips in its final years. Thus with concerns apparent the new Somali government may not be as different as it may seem.
Foreign multinationals are not innocent in fuelling this internal corruption in order to achieve cooperate interest. They achieve this through under table deals in which Somali officials sign away rights to Somalia’s resources for their own personal gain, rather than for the national interest. This has been evident in the oil contract signed in 2005 by the Puntland government with Range Resources whereby the Australian company (which at the time was a mining company) was sold all mineral rights in Puntland covering an area of 212,000 sq.km after giving the Putland government a modest bonus. It was the first time ever that regional or federal government has sold off all its petroleum rights to a single company in the world. Not only did they sell all the rights to one company, they sold it far less then market value. Exploitation of Somalia corruption is once again illustrated in the secret agreement in 2009 between Somalia’s Omar Shamarka and Kenya signed a secret agreement to give Somalia continental shelf for free. This was later abolished after the information was leaked and caused public outrage. On the subject of Somalia’s offshore, Kenya, NATO and UN are pressuring the government to reduce its 400km of offshore to just 40km, a process which will give them free-rein to Somalia’s resources and legalize the illegal toxic dumping and illegal fishing that is going on right now.
Injustice is further demonstrated in Somalia’s National Oil Law of 2007, which by the way was written by a consortium of Canadian lawyers and Kuwait on behalf of Somalia, vastly underestimates the predicted reserves and allots some of the smallest royalties and profit sharing in the petroleum world. No other country would stand for it as it will be a massive setback to the national interest and a new acceptable national oil law that gives a fair share to the country and protects national sovereignty needs to be produced before any further oil deals are made. If negotiation are held justly and wealth is distributed fairly and morally, Somalia’s living standard, health care and education sector will most definitely soar, renovating the 6th poorest country in the world with the GDP per capita of only $600 to a well-heeled, prosperous nation. However this will not be achieved with the way things are heading.
Somalia’s oil crosses boarders into the internationally unrecognized Somaliland, who proclaimed independence from Somalia in 1991. Australian Oil Company Jacka Resources and London-list Ophir Energy are among the oil companies to sign exploration agreements with Somaliland. This process is not going to be black and white, as Somalia’s oil law 2007 gives Somalia 50% percent ownership of Somaliland’s oil. Bare-in-mind that oil companies are already entitled to a large percent ownership of oil found due to Somalia’s Oil Law 2007, leaving Somaliland who already loses out on foreign aid to Somalia as it’s not eligible because of it’s unrecognized status with very little. Unless negotiations are fairly held, satisfying the needs of both countries, no-one will benefit. Pressure also needs to be placed on politicians and oil companies to justly distribute the wealth and ensure that bribery doesn’t occur through secret agreements by making oil deals public. Somalia needs to enforce and strength there ocean and coastal laws and the international community needs to start respecting and applying by them. Public interest should be a priority to ovoid similar outcomes in Nigeria, who despite being the 14th world largest oil producer, large proportion of the civilians still live in slums and huts. Awareness needs to be made; otherwise Somalia’s internal issues and desperation for change will be exploited and used against in an industry it’s never been in before. Who benefits, only time will tell.
SOMALIA, Kismayo — Soldiers serving with the Kenyan Contingent of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) stand infront of a mosque in the grounds of Kismayo University in the southern Somali port city of Kismayo, approx. 500km south of the country’s capital Mogadishu. AU-UN IST PHOTO / STUART PRICE
NAIROBI — Kenyan troops in the UN-backed Africa Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia (AMISOM) said on Wednesday that relative peace is steadily returning to the port city of Kismayo once the bastion of Al-Shabaab.
Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) spokesman Colonel Cyrus Oguna said more militants are still surrendering to AMISOM forces as the troops mull ways of setting up an inclusive administration that will run the port city.
“The security situation in Kismayo is steadily improving with more militants surrendering to AMISOM forces,” Oguna said.
“Movement in and out of the town continues to be monitored at control points erected outside the town,” he added.
The port city of Kismayo, Al-Shabaab’s only remaining stronghold, was captured by Kenyan soldiers and other allied forces on Sept. 28 after a spirited gunfire between the insurgents and AMISOM forces.
The militant group has also come under pressure from soldiers from Uganda, Burundi and Sierra Leone who recently pushed them out of the outskirts of Somali capital Mogadishu and other key regions they used to control two years ago.
Analysts said the loss of the seaport is a major blow to the Al- Shabaab who once extorted much of their revenue from traders and businesses utilizing the facility.
Kismayo, with a population of about 200,000 people, is the third largest city of Somalia which is considered the hub of the militant group which formally merged with the dreaded global terror network, the al Qaida, after several years of pledging loyalty and ideological similarities.
Oguna said KDF, Somali National Army (SNA) and Raskamboni Brigade held a meeting on Wednesday to mull the way forward on Kismayo administration. According to Oguna, the meeting resolved for establishment of a two tier administration.
“In that, tier One will comprise of the chair, his deputy and 10 assistants,” Oguna said.
Two of the 10 assistants will be in charge of a department, he said, adding the departments including security, economics, justice, social and relief.
Oguna said the tier Two will comprise of working parties, each having five personnel in the departments of security, economic, justice, social and relief, bringing the working number to 25.
“It was unanimously agreed that leadership would be rotational after 20 days,” said Oguna as the AMISOM and SNA continue with their pacification of the Horn of Africa nation.
He said the meeting further agreed the findings of the Inter- Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) meeting taking place in Nairobi will supersede any arrangements that may be existing in Kismayo presently.
“The working parties will be meeting every alternate day to brief the committee on the situation progress,” Oguna said.
Kenya blames Al-Shabaab for the kidnappings of foreigners, and fears its tourist andbusiness economy will be destroyed if it allows the insurgents to go on unchallenged.
Kenya has appealed to Somalis and those in the Diaspora to embrace peace, say no to agents of terror and prepare for the hard work of national reconstruction.
Kenya has also put security in key towns on a high alert following Kenya’s military operations in Somalia which sparked threats from the Al-Shabaab group that it will retaliate deep in Kenya.
MOGADISHU — The property market in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, has boomed since the government pushed out al-Shabab fighters.
The most peaceful period in the city in over two decades has brought thousands of Somali expatriates back to their homeland.
But with speculators hoping to turn a profit behind most of the investments in new properties, prices are skyrocketing while hundreds of thousands of internally displaced, only kilometres away, live in poverty.
Al Jazeera’s Nazanine Moshiri reports from Mogadishu.
Somali government forces backed by African Union (AU) peacekeeping forces are spreading their control over territory run by Al-Shabaab rebels in the south of the Horn of Africa country.
The allied forces this week consolidated their control over the Wanla Weyn town, 93 km south of the Somali capital Mogadishu, as well as a former Somali air force base, 15 km away from the Wanla Wein.
The newly taken areas are strategically located along the main corridor linking Mogadishu to the southern town of Baidao, which is also under the control of AU and Somali government forces.
Wanla Weyn falls at a strategic junction linking the two Shabelle regions to Baidoa in the south and Beletweyne in the north of Somalia.
Officials say the capture of Wanla Weyn facilitates the aim of connecting Mogadishu to Baidoa.
Somali Defense Minister Hussein Arab Isse was among officials who paid a visit to the regained military base near Wanla Weyn. He said the capture of the town was a victory for Somalia and called on Al-Shabaab fighters to join the government troops.
“To Al-Shabaab fighters I call upon them to lay down their arms and join the ranks of their brothers. This is your country; these are your brother’s welcome to open arms. There is no other door open for you. Somalia is sovereign nation so come and join in building the future of your country,” the Somali defense chief said in the newly taken area.
AU and Somali government officials say the advance would to deny fleeing Al-Shabaab insurgents from seeking refuge and destabilizing other regions of Somalia.
The officials believe that the capture of this town denies Al- Shabaab another source of illegal income after a string of defeats and the loss of other major sources of revenue in a number of seaports along the coastal towns.
Al-Shabaab has lost a number of key towns in central and southern regions, in particular, the port city of Kismayo, the stronghold of the rebels.
NAIROBI (Reuters) – Somalia does not plan to nullify oil and gas exploration contracts made in recent years in favour of those that were signed prior to the toppling of the government in 1991, a senior state official said on Friday.
There are concerns by investors that deals signed by companies in Somalia could be affected now that it has a new government, after electing a new permanent president for the first time in over 20 years.
When the government of the Horn of African nation fell in 1991, around a dozen companies, including many multinational oil and gas majors, had licences to explore Somalia.
Abdullahi Dool, Somali’s deputy energy minister, said it was too soon for the country to decide how it would handle a tangle of exploration licences, which grant various companies rights to explore overlapping areas.
Dool said the country would not only honour contracts signed prior to 1991 with oil majors including Royal Dutch Shell, BP and Chevron, but also new ones.
He criticised comments by Abdullahi Haider, a senior adviser to Somalia’s Ministry of Energy, that only oil licences agreed before 1991 would be upheld.
“I don’t know why Mr. Haider is making these noises … Government makes the policy, not advisers,” Dool told Reuters via telephone from Mogadishu.
Though interest in exploring for hydrocarbons in east Africa has been high recently, as a result of big oil and gas discoveries in neighboring Kenya and other regional countries such as Uganda and Tanzania, Somalia has had a complicated relationship with companies looking to cash in on the boom.
In the past two decades, two semi-autonomous regions Puntland and Somaliland, have cropped up in the northern part of Somalia, and granted their own licences to explorers.
In some cases, they have awarded exploration contracts to separate companies to search the same swath of land.
Dool said any conflicting licence awards would be settled once a new Somali cabinet is in office by November 6.
“I’m sure all of this will be reviewed,” said Dool.
Independents, who have a high-risk tolerance and are small enough to cope with rapid change, such as Africa Oil and Horn Petroleum believe their contracts with regional Somali authorities will still remain valid.
“Horn Petroleum remains confident that our oil agreements continue to be valid,” said Keith Hill, chairman and CEO of Africa Oil and chairman of Horn Petroleum.