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SOMALILAND: British and French diplomats arrive

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HARGEISA (Somalilandpress) — A high-level British and French diplomatic officials have arrived in Hargeisa for consultations over the holding of forthcoming general elections in the country and to strengthen ties, Somalilandpress has learned on Friday.

The British delegation was led by Mr. John Marshall, deputy ambassador at the UK embassy in Addis Ababa, held private discussions with the Speaker of lower house of parliament, Mr. Abdirahman Mohamed ‘Irro’, as well as the chairman of National Electoral Commission (NEC) and members from the three political parties.

Mr. Marshall, discussed a range of issues including security, forthcoming elections in Somaliland, and the role Somaliland’s 82-seat House of Representatives could play in the democratization process.

The British visit was preceded by a four-member delegation from the French embassy in Djibouti and was led by Mr. Dominique Decherf, French Ambassador to Djibouti and Mr. Thierry Choinier, the first secretary of the French Embassy in Djibouti. The other two members, Mr. Banos Robles Bernard and Mr. Jacques Sabrot were from the French Ministry of education and the Ministry of Culture respectively.

The French delegation has met with the Minister of State of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Abdirahman Osman Adan. The two sides discussed ways of working towards strengthening ties between Somaliland and France in the fields of security, development, education and culture. They have also discussed the forthcoming elections and the French delegation plans to meet with all political parties as well as the NEC. The delegation said they were also in the country for a fact-finding mission and were accompanied by Somaliland Representative to France, Mr. Ali Ismael Hassan.

French Diplomats

Somalilandpress has learned that, the French want Somaliland’s high-tertiary institutions to include French in their education curriculum as well as presenting French culture and identity through the support of their Maisons de Culture (culture centres), which Mr. Jacques Sabrot is leading. The French diplomats also insisted that they would help Somaliland build strong education capacity and infrastructure.

In recent times, Somaliland has been developing strong ties with France, it was three weeks ago when Somaliland Liaison office in Paris was invited to the all exclusive French-speaking, the International Organisation of La Francophonie for it’s 40th anniversary. In late 2009, Somaliland business communities as well as members of the government were also invited to Djibouti to meet with French companies.

The British and French delegation came just days after the NEC has announced the general election will be held in June and that all three parties have signed the agreed date.

Photo: British diplomats with Speaker of House of Representatives, Mr Irro.

Somalilandpress, 17 April 2010

Somaliland: Fairland University opens it's doors

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HARGEISA (Somalilandpress) — A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held in the main hall of Ministry of Labour in Hargeisa on Thursday for Fairland University, a private university based in Uganda.

The head of the new establishment in Hargeisa, Mr. Abdisalam Isse Farah who spoke there gave a brief history of Fairland University and private-education in Uganda in general.

Mr. Farah stated that the Fairland University is among 22 private institution in Uganda and that it was established in 2001 and has six campuses in Uganda.

He also stated that the university is partnered with other continental leading institutions such as the University of South Africa, which is among the top 20 ranked universities in Africa. It also has linkages with leading universities in South Sudan, Kenya and Tanzania.
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Fairland University will be offering certificate, diploma, degree and post-graduate courses in Economics and Management services, Education and sports, Law, Science and Technology and Art.

The Vice Education Minister, Mr. Ismael Mohamud, who was also present welcomed the new institution but warned them they must meet education requirements of Somaliland and that very soon his ministry will be establishing a committee that will review all education institutions in the country. He said all institutions will have to meet their tertiary institution requirements in order to continue their operations.

In August of 2009, the National Council for Higher Education of Uganda issued a notice to the Fairland University accusing them of lack of sufficient infrastructure and human resources and warned them of taking new students.

Fairland University is now part of growing number of private universities in Somaliland including a number of colleges and universities from neighbouring Ethiopia. Despite the growth of education, many local and international analysts question the quality of education in the country.

Other guests in the ceremony included vice-mayor of Hargeisa, Mr. Mohamed Abdullahi, Spokesman of UDUB party, Mr. Ali Gurey, vice-chairman of UCID party, Mr. Adan Mohamed Mire, as well as members of parliament and the Gurti.

Photo: Fairland University in Jinja, Uganda

Somalilandpress, 16 April 2010

Somaliland Court Sentences 3 To Death For Attacks

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HARGEISA 15 April 2010 (Somalilandpress) – A court in Somalia’s northern breakaway region of Somaliland sentenced three people to death on Wednesday and ordered the deportation of four foreigners for four bomb attacks on the security forces, court sources said.

Five people were killed in the attacks between November and January, including four police officers killed in a single attack in January.

Somaliland is proud of its relative stability, compared with the anarchy further south, but the attacks were a reminder of its vulnerability to radical militants.

The four foreigners — two Ethiopians, an Eritrean and a Sudanese — said they were not involved in the attacks, but the chairman of Berbera Regional Court ordered their deportation. Police sources said at the time of the blast in January that an explosive device had been left among milk cans near a mosque in Las Anod near the Puntland border.

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Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab — a major rebel group in Somalia — hit Somaliland and Puntland with synchronised suicide blasts that killed at least 24 people in October 2008.

A row has been simmering between the Somaliland president and opposition parties over delays in elections, and analysts said this could trigger a re-arming of clan militias and new violence for al Shabaab to exploit.

But in a surprise announcement on Tuesday, Somaliland’s National Electoral Commission said the presidential poll would take place in June.

Source: Reuters

Djibouti parliament removes presidential term limits

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DJIBOUTI, (SomalilandPress) – Lawmakers in Djibouti on Wednesday approved an amendment to the constitution that paves the way for the president of the Horn of Africa nation to run for a third term.

Industrials

Djibouti’s parliament voted unanimously on the constitutional reforms which remove term limits, cut the presidential mandate to five years from six, create a senate and abolish capital punishment.

President Ismail Omar Guelleh’s second term expires in 2011 and speculation has surrounded his plans for a third mandate.

Djibouti, a former French colony which separates Eritrea from Somalia, hosts France’s largest military base in Africa and a major U.S. base. Its port is used by foreign navies patrolling busy shipping lanes off the coast of Somalia to fight piracy.

Dubai World has a deep-sea base at Djibouti port, which serves as the principle access point for goods entering and exiting land-locked Ethiopia. [ID:nLDE62L1LZ]

Last month, Guelleh told Reuters China would be Djibouti’s biggest investor next year and in 2012 and that he planned to make Djibouti port the biggest hub in the region at a cost of nearly half a billon U.S. dollars. [ID:nLDE62K0FE] (Reporting by Abdourahim Arteh, Editing by Richard Lough and Charles Dick)

source:Reuters

Vacancy Anouncement: UNPD-CSI Somaliland

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The following is a vacancy announcement by UNPD, who are seeking a qualified consultant to conduct a tracer study of Somaliland Civil Service Institute (CSI) graduates and report to the SIDP project manager for a period of five weeks. CSI is responsible for human resources development in Somaliland.

I. General Information

Title of Consultancy:
Impact Tracer Study, CSI Somaliland

Type of Contract:
SSA – Special Service Agreement

Duration of the assignment:
5 Weeks

Duty station:
Nairobi, UNDP Somalia Office

Expected places of travel:
Hargeisa, Somaliland

Supervisor:
SIDP Project Manager

Anticipated presence at UNDP premises:
Intermittent presence with frequent travel to Somaliland

Date of Issue:
April 12, 2010

Closing Date:
April 26, 2010

II. Objectives of the assignment

The Somaliland Civil Service Institute (CSI) is a Public Sector Training Institute established in May 2005. The institute trains Somaliland civil servants, private sector employees, local governmental and non-governmental organizations staff. CSI was previously hosted by the University of Hargeisa but in December 2009 it moved to its new centre in the city center, built with support from UNDP. CSI focuses on developing the capacity of the employees in the areas of public financial management and accounting, public administration, information and communication technology – among others. The institute also provides tailor made training programmes to both public and private sector employees.

Nearly 70% of the CSI operational cost is supported by UNDP. The remaining 30 % comes from Government of Somaliland (25%) and the CSI itself (approx. 5%) . Average operational cost is close to $180,000 per year. An exit strategy developed jointly by UNDP and CSI indicate the Government of Somaliland will gradually take over the CSI recurrent costs. In 2013, CSI is expected to be fully supported (100%) by the Government of Somaliland

More than 1250 civil service employees have been trained by the Civil Service Institute since it opened in May 2005. The Institute provides a series of short work related/ performance improvement courses including management, leadership, accounting, statistics, book keeping, expenditure management, etc. The training courses offered by CSI are primarily tailored to respond to the needs of government institutions based on assessments undertaken by the Civil Service Commission.

An evaluation of the impact of the training interventions undertaken by the institute is needed to determine the impact it has made on the capacity of the government institution to deliver social services. This evaluation will lay the basis for design improvements in the institute’s human capacity development approaches.

III. Scope of work

The major tasks and responsibilities of the consultant comprise the following:

  1. Conduct a tracer study of CSI graduates, where they are currently working and what they are doing.
  2. Assess the impact the 4 years training has made in improving the capacity of key Government institutions, in terms how better equipped staff are on the basis of the training they have received.
  3. Assess the relevance of the training provided by CSI to the country’s administrative, management and development requirements.
  4. Evaluate the overall capacity of the CSI to deliver the skills and knowledge required by Somaliland Government institutions, and suggest improvements.
  5. Determine the level of commitment of Somaliland institutions to human resource capacity development, including the incentives provided to trained staff.
  6. Highlight any constraints inhibiting staff performance in key public institutions and their causes, and suggest how they should be addressed.
  7. Evaluate the partnership between the Somaliland Civil Service Commission, the ministry responsible for labour and the CSI, and suggest how this partnership can be enhanced to provide better human resources development for Somaliland

IV. Monitoring and Progress controls

The consultant will report to the SIDP project manager. The assignment witself will be supervised by the SIDP project office in Hargeisa, Somaliland.

V. Final product/deliverable

  1. An inception report within 7 calendar days of the start of the assignment
  2. A Draft Report within 21 calendar days of the start of the assignment
  3. A Final Report within 14 calendar days of receipt of comments on the Draft Report

VI: Review/approval time

SIDP will provide written comments on the Draft Report within 10 calendar days of receipt of the draft to assist it revision. Approval of the Draft Final Report or comments for further improvement will be communicated to the consultant within 14 days of receipt of the Draft Final report.

VII: Qualifications

Development and Operational Effectiveness

  1. Ability to evaluate the impact of training interventions on institutional capacity development
  2. Strong research and analytical skills

Education

  1. Advanced degree in Public Administration/ Human Resource Management

Experience

  1. At least 10 years experience in Public Administration/ Human Resource Management

VIII: Other information

UNDP Somali Institutional Development Project will (i) provide the consultant with all information relating to all training conducted by the Somaliland Civil Service Institute, and (ii) assist the consultant to contact the relevant people in Somaliland government ministries and agencies.

Interested and qualified candidates are requested to submit electronic application by visiting http://jobs.undp.org/. The closing date for receipt of applications is 26th April 2010.

Applicants are required to fill a P11 Form and submit it together with Curriculum Vitae on the online application.

Find the P11 Form for Fixed Term Contract Holders on this link:
http://www.so.undp.org/index.php/Download-document/42-P11-form-for-fixed-term-and-ALDs.html

Women & Somali Nationals are strongly encouraged to apply

UNDP will only be able to respond to those applications in which there is further interest.

New Generation Of Somali Pirates Emerging

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A new generation of well-organised Somali pirates is targeting ships and aims to use ransoms from hijackings for further criminal activities, a senior ship industry official says.

Seaborne gangs have already increased their attacks in recent months, making tens of millions of dollars in ransoms from seizing ships, including tankers and dry bulkers, in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden.

Better weather is expected to lead to further attacks.

Jan Kopernicki, president of the UK Chamber of Shipping industry association and also vice president of Shell Shipping, a unit of Royal Dutch Shell, told Reuters an “industrialisation of piracy” was taking place.

“It certainly seems from the shipping industry point of view that it’s a more structured and organised approach that is developing and that is worrying because it’s much more in the area of solid criminality,” he said in an interview.

Kopernicki, who was appointed UK Chamber of Shipping president last month, said there had been a “substitution” of groups involved.

“The first generation pirates have been succeeded by a second generation which are different and from different groups and from what I understand connected differently,” he said.

“I absolutely don’t want to suggest this is linked to terrorism from what I am aware of.”

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The previous generation of pirates had divided up ransoms to fund their villages in Somalia, Kopernicki said, adding there was better-organised use now of mother ships and small speed boats known as skiffs.

“We are now seeing structured organisation with material apparently being brought down a supply line to supply these boats and skiffs,” said Kopernicki, who leads Shell’s shipping business.

“The impression we have is that the money flows are leaving Somalia and going into criminal elements.”

West Africa

Foreign navies have been deployed off the Gulf of Aden since 2009 and have operated convoys, as well as setting up a transit corridor across dangerous waters. But their forces have been stretched over the vast waterways, leaving ships vulnerable.

While West African pirates have not attracted the same amount of international attention as their Somali counterparts, maritime analysts say they pose an increasing risk in a region with weak surveillance and a growing number of oil finds.

Cameroon’s state oil company said last week crude oil production fell by 13 % last year in part because piracy off the coast cut investment.

“The situation in West Africa is beginning to have the elements that would give concern of a copy cat developing more generically in that area,” Kopernicki said.

Shell declined to comment on how many vessels the group had operating off East and West Africa citing “security reasons”.

Kopernicki said consultation on “an urgent basis” was needed between governments, the military and industry to review plans for protecting merchant traffic off West Africa to ensure the situation did not escalate. “We are early enough in the piece to be able to do something constructive.”

Source: Reuters

Seven Questions for the Kulmiye Party of Somaliland

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HARGEISA (Somalilandpress) — Kulmiye party of Somaliland is positioning itself as a party of change but its policies are ambiguous.

The International Crisis Group cautioned against holding elections in Sool where the largest number of potential new ‘voters’ were registered last year although Sool’s turn-coat politician, Ahmed Abdi Habsade argued that no voter registration had taken place in Sool & Sanaag regions.

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The following list of questions for Kulmiye are intended to trigger a debate on, among other issues, the direction of the party, its relationship with UCID party, and how it has so far addressed the breach of Code of Conduct for Political Organizations by other parties.

1-How would KULMIYE party solve the fraud in voter registration that led to the postponement of elections in Somaliland?

2- Will KULMIYE consider the possibility of forming a coalition government with UCID led by Faysal Ali Warabe if the need arises?

3- In an interview posted on YouTube , KULMIYE leader has told Ahmed Hassan Awke, the Somali newscaster, that Somaliland Vice President, Ahmed Yusuf Yasin, had urged his sub-clan to vote for UDUB Party, Somaliland’s ruling party. Does KULMIYE leader consider the Vice President’s remarks a breach of the Code of Conduct for Political Organizations?

4- If KULMIYE were given a chance to introduce electoral reform, what would it do to reduce the possibility of electoral stalemate that has bedevilled Somaliland since 2007?

5- KULMIYE party leader, Ahmed M. Mahamoud Silanyo blamed President Dahir Riyale Kahin for the assassination of Osmaan Yusuf Nuur who was commander of the 12th division of Somaliland Military in Las-Anod last year. Does this mean KULMIYE leader has lost faith in Somaliland judiciary?

6- Why has KULMIYE fallen short of addressing the Somaliland government’s policy of ignoring and threatening traditional leaders of pro-union constituencies in Sool region?

7- Will a KULMIYE-led government hold talks with the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia?

Written by: Liban Ahmad, 14 April 2010
Libahm@gmail.com
__________________________________________________________
Views expressed in the opinion articles are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the editorial

SOMALILAND: Landmine Incident Kills Two

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HARGEISA, 14 April 2010 (Somalilandpress) – A vehicle owned by Halo Trust was hit by a landmine killing two people and wounding others. The incident took place on Monday in Dabagorayaale, Togdheer region.

Two of Halo Trust local staff were killed and other were wounded and taken to Hargeisa hospital.

Reports say the vehicle was carrying a team working on removing mines from the area. It is not clear the cause of the incident but witness told Somalilandpress that the vehicle was on its way back the camp when the mine exploded. “The road was cleared before and people normally use it, I don’t know what happened” said one of the residents.

Halo Trust did not officially talk about the incident and how this happened specially after the areas was marked as “save” from landmines.

“It could  sometimes happen that we do not know about  one or two of them specially when we are working in vast areas but this is really shocking” said one of the Halo Trust staff.

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Landmine incidents are a major problem in Somaliland. Due to long history of wars in the region, the country is still suffering the impact of thousands of landmines and other explosives.

Halo Trust is one of the International Organizations working on removing landmines in Somaliland. Their work covers all the regions and most of their operations were successful but such incident specially places where the organization said they cleared from the landmines can bring a question if the other places are save or not.

Somalilandpress

Abaarso Tech: Somalilandpress sits down with Jonathan Starr

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In an exclusive interview with Somalilandpress, Mohammed Ibrahim had the pleasure to ask questions Jonathan Starr, the co-founder and Managing Director of Abaarso Tech, a non-profit organization and boarding school in Somaliland.

Mr. Jonathan, an Economics graduate from Emory University, is also the founder of Flagg Street Capital, a private investment company that manages more than $170 million of investor assets. Before he found Flagg Street, Mr. Jonathan worked as an analyst at SAB Capital and Blavin & Company.

Jonathan says the aim of Abaarso Tech is to offer world class education to people of the Horn of Africa not only to those in Hargeisa.

The following is the full audio of the
interview: [audio: starr.mp3]

Photo: Daniel teaching physics (Abaarso Tech)


Somalilandpress, 13 April 2010

Dahabshiil Receives Mayor's Award

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LONDON (Somalilandpress) — Dahabshiil, the UK’s leading money transfer provider to the Horn of Africa, has received the Mayor of Tower Hamlets Award for excellence in the community.

The award, presented by the Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Councilor Ahmed Adam Omer, recognises Dahabshiil’s dedication and outstanding contribution to the local, national and international Somali community over the last 40 years.

Councillor Ahmed Adam Omer said: “I’m delighted to present Dahabshiil with the Mayor of Tower Hamlets Award for excellence in the community.

“Dahabshiil is a fantastic example of how businesses can integrate responsible business practices into mainstream operations, while benefiting its customers, the environment and its employees.

“Dahabshiil has been a pillar of our community for more than two decades and it’s great to see an African business thriving and having such a huge impact throughout the UK and internationally.”
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Dahabshiil, which has 200 locations in the UK and an expanding network of more than 24,000 agents and branches in 144 countries worldwide, is committed to supporting the Somali community around the world and invests more than 5% of its annual profits into community regeneration projects involving the development of schools, hospitals, agriculture and sanitation.

In the UK, Dahabshiil sponsors a range of events, including the Somali Week Festival, where it helps to promote understanding and integration through Somali art and culture, and the Somali Youth Sports Association, which promotes sportsmanship and competition among players within the UK and in Europe.

Abdirashid Duale, CEO of Dahabshiil, said: “We are honoured to receive the Mayor of Tower Hamlets Award for excellence and it underlines our commitment to trust and community responsibility.

“We are extremely proud of our corporate citizenship philosophy and will continue to work on improving our initatives and develop new ones.”

The award ceremony, held on Monday 12 April at Dahabshiil’s UK headquarters in Tower Hamlets, was attended by Mayor Ahmed Adam Omer, Dahabshiil CEO Abdirashid Duale and members of Dahabshiil’s staff.

Dahabshiil employs more than 2,000 people across 144 countries and has provided money transfer and cash facilitation for international aid agencies.

Over 95% of the International Organisations in Somalia, including the United Nations, World Health Organisation, World Bank, Oxfam and Save the Children, rely on Dahabshiil to provide payment services for their staff, contractors, government institutions and partner NGOs.

Abdirashid Duale added: “Transferring remittances is a lifeline for many people in the developing world whose friends or family live abroad and regularly send money home.”

Source: Dahabshiil, 13 April 2010

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