This, the First Issue of the AMISOM Review in Have Also Added Their Weight in the West, Helping the TFG Liberate 2012

Message from the SRCC Introduction by Special Representative Ambassador Diarra

elcome to this, the first issue of the AMISOM Review in have also added their weight in the west, helping the TFG liberate 2012. In this edition, we take a look back at the momentous strategic towns such as Beletweyne from the extremists. Wevents of the last twelve months. What a year 2011 was! The re-hatting of Kenyan forces as AMISOM troops, which has From the military successes which resulted in the expulsion of al been approved by both Kenya and the AU and now only awaits UN Shabaab terrorists from Mogadishu, to the adoption of a Roadmap Security Council assent, will undoubtedly contribute to achieving to end the seemingly interminable transition to permanent govern- AMISOM’s overall mandate of stabilizing the entire country, as will ment, to the struggle against catastrophic famine, it was a year of the addition of Djibouti troops in Mogadishu. Others, such as Guinea triumphs and tragedies. and Sierra Leone are also waiting in the wings. It was also the year that African countries proved they could On the humanitarian front, the AMISOM success in Mogadishu succeed where larger and better equipped armies had failed. was critical to the international community’s ability to effectively re- Four years after it was spond to the needs within deployed, an under- Somalia. By holding the manned and under- seaport and airport, and resourced African Union securing space within mission forced the al the city, AMISOM was Qaeda linked extremists indispensable in enabling to abandon most of their vital food aid to be de- positions in the capital, livered Even before the and for the first time in crisis, AMISOM had been twenty years, Mogadishu providing free medical is now controlled by an care and potable water internationally-recognized to civilians living near its government. bases. Further, it was the With the help of fellow intervention of an African Africans, Somalia has head of state, Uganda’s been presented with its President Yoweri Mu- best opportunity yet to seveni, that led to the achieve lasting peace and signing of the Kampala stability. In the coming Accord which resolved year, it is crucial that differences between these efforts are rein- key Transitional Federal forced and consolidated. Institutions on achiev- AMISOM must be pro- ing an orderly end to the vided with the necessary transition and set the tools and manpower to stage for the adoption of accomplish its important the Roadmap. task. At the same time, African countries con- the international com- tinue to help the Transi- munity must continue tional Government extend to stay engaged in the its authority to the rest of Somali peace process to the country. In October, Kenyan forces crossed the border in pursuit ensure that the TFG succeeds in delivering on its transitional tasks, of al Shabaab elements that were held responsible for a string of by providing the necessary resources and oversight. kidnappings and murders that had devastated Kenya’s tourism Working together, we can all ensure that 2012 is indeed a happy industry. Working with Somali government forces, they have been and prosperous year for all the people of Somalia. able to force the terror group to withdraw from the Gedo region, Ras Kamboni and other areas of southern Somalia. At the urging Ambassador Boubacar Gaoussou Diarra, Special Representative of the IGAD Summit and the invitation of the TFG, the Ethiopians of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission on Somalia

2 Contents January 2012

In Brief 4 A few of the top stories of 2011

The year that was 6 A retrospective look at the events of 2011

Taking Mogadishu 8 The AMISOM Force Spokesman recounts the 4 year battle for the city Learning on the job 14 The former Force Commander describes how AMISOM soldiers have adapted Beyond Mogadishu 15 The current Force Commander looks ahead Looking the part 16 AMISOM’s expansion will necessitate a fresh look at funding structures Moment of fresh opportunities 17 The sacrifices made by AMISOM must not be in vain

A City Stirs 18 Mogadishu begins to rebuild

… A thousand words 20 Images from 2011

Flying high 26 Business takes off at the Aden Adde International Airport Coming to Mogadishu 28 The year the world returned to Somalia Man of the year 28 Mogadishu’s Mayor has big plans for his city Thin blue line 29 Somalia’s police and security agencies are stepping up

The year in politics 30 Political developments came thick and fast in 2011 Rebuilding the nation 32 Somalia must take responsibility for its fate A window of opportunity 33 Somalia has made major strides in the face of major challenges The London Conference 34 A common approach to addressing the suffering of the Somali people

Hunger stalks the horn 35 Somalia caught in a perfect storm of calamities Fighting the famine 38 The world comes to Somalia’s aid

Publisher: Information Department of the African Union Mission in Somalia

Managing Editor: Eloi Yao Spokesperson: Lt.Col.Paddy Ankunda Design/Layout: Zvezdan Djukanovic P.O Box 20182 – 00200, Nairobi, Kenya Phone: +254 202 713 755 /56 /58 Fax: +254 202 713 766 Email: [email protected] [email protected] Website: www.amisom-au.org 3 commercial cargo ships attacked in the Gulf casualty of the Accord was Prime Minister of Aden, with 19 successful hijackings. In Abullahi Mohamed (“Formajo”), whose re- 2008, there were 111 ships attacked and 42 moval was greeted by countrywide protests. successful hijackings. The IMO attributes Somali troops kill the drop to the spread of best management practice guidance and increased awareness EA terror chief by crews of how to access naval protection in Mogadishu and implement the recommended evasive Barely three weeks after the killing of Al and defensive measures. It also cites the Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, on 2 May, use of on-board armed security teams as Fazul Abdullah Mohamed, the terror group’s well as increased patrols of waters off the East Africa chief was shot and killed by Somali Government coast of Somalia and enhanced efforts by TFG soldiers in Mogadishu. Fazul, topped Rewards Merit countries to prosecute suspected pirates. the FBI’s most wanted list for his role in The economic costs of piracy, however, re- planning the bombing of US Embassies At the beginning of the year, the govern- main huge — estimated between $ 7 billion in Kenya and Tanzania in August 1998. ment of Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi and $ 12 billion a year — with some of the Fazul’s death was a significant blow to the “Farmajo” marked its first 100 days in office costs incurred because some shipowners al Shabaab terror group who, according to on 5 March. A few days prior, the Interna- refuse to allow their ships to sail through the outgoing CIA chief Leon Panetta, are look- tional Crisis Group released a report which Gulf, sending them round the much more ing to extend their operations and carry out described the reduced, 18-member tech- expensive route via the Cape of Good Hope. attacks abroad. In written responses to the nocratic Cabinet as “the boldest reform the [Transitional Federal Government] has yet undertaken…. [T]his cabinet does appear to be the first tentative step toward rewarding merit, rather than political expediency.” The report noted that new finance minister, Hussein Halane, was “making serious attempts … to inject professionalism and transparency into the revenue collection and management system, as well as to strengthen internal mechanisms governing dispersal of government money. So far he appears to have a free hand to revamp the ministry and create a more open and accountable fiscal and monetary system.”

Piracy declines

The activities of pirates off the coast of So- Senate Armed Services committee in June, malia declined throughout 2011. According Kampala accord signed Panetta said the threat to US and Western to the International Maritime Organization, interests in the Horn of Africa and to the “the number of ships and seafarers held On June 9, the Kampala Accord - an agree- US homeland was on the rise and that the captive by Somali pirates reduced from a ment between President Sheikh Sharif extremists were “developing ties with Al-Qa- peak of 33 and 733 in February 2011 to 13 Ahmed and the Speaker of Parliament, eda in the Arabian Peninsula and showing and 265 respectively at the beginning of Sheikh Sharif Hassan resolving the dispute an increasing desire to stage international December 2011. The number of reported on extending the TFG’s mandate beyond terrorist attacks in addition to their acts of attacks also declined from a high of 45 per August 2011 - was signed. The Accord was violence inside Somalia.” Confirmation of month in January 2011 to 14 for the month negotiated under the auspices of Ugandan this came in the form of a handwritten terror of November 2011; and the proportion of President Yoweri Museveni, and facilitated hit-list found on Fazul’s body which included successful attacks has been cut from 20 by Augustine Mahiga, the Special Rep- the world-famous Dorchester and Ritz per cent in January 2011 to just seven per resentative for the Secretary General to hotels as well as Eton College in London. cent in November 2011.” Even compared Somalia. It brought to an end 4 months of An unnamed British intelligence source told to previous years, the numbers indicate wrangling precipitated by the Transitional the London Evening Standard that Fazul’s a significantIn reduction. By December, the FederalBrief Parliament’s unilateral move to death was “considered to be a significant International Maritime Bureau had noted 80 extend its own tenure in February. The main disruption to these plans.”

4 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW UN declares famine in Somalia On 20 July the UN declared famine in three districts of Somalia, the nation hardest hit by the food crisis in the Horn of Africa. Half the Somali population, or nearly 4 million people, were said to be in immediate need of food assistance with close to a fifth of these at severe risk of starving to death within a few weeks. Though the entire region was experiencing its worst drought in a generation, in Somalia, the actions of al Shabaab -who not only looted grain stores, taxed food markets and menaced farmers until they gave up planting but also barred access to international humanitarian agencies - escalated the drought into famine. By Turkish PM visits September, the famine had spread to three various local administrations. Based on more regions. However, the extremists’ de- Mogadishu four pillars – Security; Constitution; Good feat in Mogadishu allowed the international On 19 August, Turkish Prime Minister Erdo- Governance; and Outreach and Reconcili- community to bring in significant amounts gan made a historic state visit to Somalia. ation - the Roadmap delineates a timeline of food aid and by November, the number of Good Turkish-Somali relations are not new for accomplishing key tasks before the those facing the imminent risk of starvation and have historic roots that date back to end of the transitional period in August had been cut by two-thirds. 1517. However, a shifting focus on Africa has 2012. A watershed moment in the Somali placed the Turks at the forefront of rallying peace process, the Roadmap established international support to provide humanitar- benchmarks and compliance mechanisms, ian assistance for drought-afflicted Somalis. with international monitoring, to ensure they Erdogan has also pushed for coordinated are met in good time. A follow up meeting support to re-establish peace and stabil- was held in the Puntland capital, Garowe, ity. In his wake came a veritable horde of in October which agreed on the “Garowe international dignitaries including the Chair- Principles” to guide Somalia’s political and man of the AU Commission, Jean Ping, constitutional development, address the Saudi Prince and CEO of Kingdom Holding reform of the Somali parliament, the forma- Company, His Royal Highness Alwaleed Bin tion of a national Constituent Assembly to Al Shabaab flees Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, who also chairs vote on a federal constitution and create a from Mogadishu the Alwaleed Humanitarian Foundation, new federal government based on the ‘4.5’ The morning of 6 August was like no other award-winning Somali-Canadian rapper, clan formula. for residents of Mogadishu. Overnight, the K’naan and, in December, UN Secretary- al Shabaab terrorists had been forced to General, Ban Ki-moon. Kenya send troops withdraw from the capital following opera- Roadmap to end the into S. Somalia tions launched earlier in the week by the AMISOM and Somali National Army. A transition adopted On 14 October, Kenya launched a military failed counter-offensive across the entire On 6 September, the three-day Consul- incursion into southern Somalia in pursuit frontline seems to have precipitated their tative Meeting on Ending the Transition of al Shabaab terrorists whom she blamed exit and they were reported to have fled as concluded in Mogadishu with the adoption for a spate of kidnappings and murders far as 100km away from the city, leaving the of a Roadmap signed by a cross-section of foreign tourists that had devastated her internationally-recognized government in of Somali political actors. These included lucrative tourism industry. By December, controlIn of all Mogadishu for the first time in theBrief TFG, Puntland ASWJ, Galmuduug and the Kenyan offensive pushed the Shabaab two decades. Pockets of terrorists remained out of many towns in the south and the AU’s in the outskirts of the capital from where Peace and Security Council invited the they plotted terror attacks on the city’s Kenyan government to rehat its troops as population, such as the October 4 bombing part of AMISOM, an invitation Kenya quickly which killed over 100 people, most of them accepted. With the AU agreeing in Januarry students. However, with the aid of tips from to raise AMISOM’s troops ceiling to 17,700, the public, most attacks are being foiled and all that remains for this to happen is the ap- several terrorists have been apprehended. proval of the UN Security Council.

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 5 n many ways, 2011 will be remembered tised nationwide offensive against the ex- the terrorists derived between a third and as a watershed year for Somalia. Rare tremist rebels. Up till then, the fighting was two-thirds of their revenues via extortion Ipictures of high profile visitors and Mog- mainly concentrated in Mogadishu, where from businesses, was surrounded on three adishu residents sunning themselves on the the Shabaab terror group had been steadily sides. Its loss essentially spelled the end of beaches testify to the fundamental changes losing ground to the Somali National Army Shabaab’s brutal 4-year reign in the north- in the security situation that have taken place backed up by troops from the AU Mission in ern areas of the city and by August most of in the capital since the Al Qaeda-affiliated Somalia. Just two months prior, AMISOM their fighters were forced to leave Mogadi- terror group, al Shabaab, was forced out. had finally reached its mandated strength of shu. Earlier on, the terrorists had been dealt A famine, centred in the southern regions 8000 troops and the UN Security Council in a further blow when Al Qaeda’s most senior

The year that was still controlled by the terrorists brought So- December 2010 raised the ceiling to 12000. operative in East Africa, Fazul Mohammed, malia to the front pages, as did the entry of By the end of the year, AMISOM had just was gunned down in June by TFG troops neighbouring Kenya into the fray. Events on under 10,000 soldiers in Mogadishu and the manning a checkpoint in Mogadishu. the political level may not have garnered as extra troops had a telling effect. Unable to sustain a conventional campaig n much attention but they were of no less im- In February the al Shabaab were kicked in the capital, the Shabaab turned to tactics port for the future of a country struggling to out of their tactical headquarters in the capi- similar to those employed by Al Qaeda in emerge from two decades of anarchy. tal and in the south, government forces made other parts of the world. Terror cells remain- The year begun with the Transitional significant progress in Gedo and Bakool re- ing within the city and its environs tried to Federal Government and its allies, the Ahlu gions. By March, the prized Bakara Market launch a series of indiscriminate bombings Sunna Wal Jamaa, launching a long adver- from where the UN Monitoring Group says targeting civilians and government officials.

6 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW In one incident, a suicide truck bomb in Oc- and aid agencies had established feeding up with Kenyan airline, East African Safari tober claimed the lives of over 100 people, centres and where much of the food aid flow- Air Express introducing 2 weekly flights most of them students queuing up for Turk- ing from the international community could during the year. Airlines in Turkey, Uganda ish scholarships at the ministry of education be distributed in relative safety. Many had and Dubai have expressed interest in flying building. However, a majority of their plots to undertake the journey at night to avoid to Mogadishu, with Turkish Airlines com- have been frustrated by citizens in Mogadi- checkpoints that the Shabaab had set up in a mencing flights in the first quarter of 2012. shu who have reported suspicious activities vain attempt to hide the scale of the suffer- With the help of the international commu- in their neighbourhoods. In a ten day period ing. Despite this, at the height of the crisis nity, the government and municipal authori- in December, over 15 bombs were recovered over 1500 people were streaming into the ties, under the untiring leadership of the May- and disposed of by the authorities following capital every day. or of Mogadishu, have made some strides in tip offs from the public. The response from the international com- providing rudimentary services. Around the The removal of the Shabaab from Moga- munity was immediate and massive, spurred city, roads were repaired and lit, garbage col- dishu opened a window of opportunity for on by reporters from the global media net- lected and schools and hospitals refurbished. progress to be made in the peace process. works. Correspondents and anchors from Life returned to the city as homes were rebuilt In June, Uganda’s President, Yoweri Mu- CNN, Al Jazeera and the BBC as well as and markets reopened. Traffic jams became a seveni and the UN special envoy, Augustine the New York Times, The London Times perennial headache at the K4 intersection and Mahiga, had helped broker a deal between and the Wall Street Journal all beat a path real estate prices along Via Moscow doubled. President Sheikh Shariff and Speaker Shar- to Mogadishu. The world’s politicians were Despite the threat of terrorist attack, people iff Hassan which extended the TFG’s ten- not far behind. could stay out in the streets late into the night ure by one more year and called for the a A visit from the AU’s High Representative and revel in Mogadishu’s scenic beaches for roadmap of tasks to be carried out to lead for Somalia and former Ghanaian president, the first time in years. Perhaps nothing illus- to the successful conclusion of the Transi- Jerry Rawlings in July kicked off a raft of trates the change better than a football tour- tional Government by August 2012. Barely a VIP visits that included the Chairperson nament featuring teams from all 16 districts month after the Shabaab retreat, Mogadishu of the AU Commission, Jean Ping, Saudi of the capital which opened December at the hosted a national conference, the first since Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Koonis Stadium. The Stadium was a former 2007, during which the Roadmap to End the Alsaud and Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Shabaab training ground and had not wit- Transition was adopted and subsequently Erdogan. At the end of the year, Ban Ki- nessed a game in years, soccer having been presented to the parliament. Designed to in- moon travelled to Mogadishu, the first time banned by the extremists–along with music crease the representativeness and effective- a UN Secretary-General had visited the city and samosas- as un-Islamic. ness of the Transitional Institutions and in- in 20 years. In the south, the government offensive clude a greater range of political factions in As security improved, so did life for the continued to take town after town with the moves towards peace there are hopes it will ordinary people. The international food aid help of local militia such as the Ras Kam- increase legitimacy and ultimately lead to delivered to Mogadishu had the effect of boni Brigade who had fallen out with their an internationally-recognised government. driving down food prices in Banadir region erstwhile allies, the Shabaab. The entry of It detailed the urgent tasks to be undertaken and the famine, which had spread to five Kenyan troops into southern Somalia fur- in the run up to an election process in Au- regions, was being beaten back. In Novem- ther ratcheted up the pressure on the Sha- gust 2012, including the drafting and prom- ber, the UN cut by two-thirds its estimate baab leading to their withdrawal from many ulgation of a new constitution, a National of the number of people at risk. It however towns as they either fell back to defend Kis- Security and Stabilisation Plan, mechanisms remained alarmingly high at a quarter of a mayu, a major port city, or simply melted for better governance, Parliamentary reform million, most of them in the south where away into the population. and the provision of improved services. the extremists had reinstituted and extended Following an invitation from the AU, The improving security situation in Moga- their ban on aid agencies following a brief the Kenyan government agreed to transfer dishu also meant the city became home to suspension. So, at the time of writing, Soma- control of the country’s troops in Somalia thousands of people fleeing the worsening lia continues to require sustained assistance to AMISOM. The move must now be scru- humanitarian crisis in the worst hit areas, from the world’s big donor agencies to help tinized and approved by the AU’s Peace often those controlled by the extremists. bring it back from the brink. and Security Council and the UN’s Secu- There, the al Shabaab’s predation on farmers The capital too enjoyed something of a rity Council, though with the deployment in the south as well as their denial of access resurgence. The average number of monthly of a battalion from Djibouti in December for international aid agencies had escalated flights landing at the city’s Aden Abdulleh and insertion of extra Burundian soldiers, the worst drought in a generation into a fully International Airport grew from just under AMISOM at the end of the year finds itself in fledged famine. By July, a third of the popu- 250 at the beginning of the year to 380 and the unaccustomed position of being offered lation was starving and the UN had declared there was an estimated a 25 percent increase more troops than its mandate allows for. A a famine in three regions of the country. in passenger traffic over the year, many of speedy resolution to raise the troop ceiling Those who could were making the long them being families returning for the first would bode well as the mission seeks to rep- trek to the capital, and to refugee camps in time from both US and Canada. The number licate the successes achieved in Mogadishu Kenya and Ethiopia, where the government of carriers flying to Mogadishu has also gone in 2011 across the rest of the country. g

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 7 TakingTaking MogadishuMogadishu By Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda

n the morning of March 6, 2007, a where the mightiest nations in the world had sented Somalia with its best opportunity in large Belarussian military trans- failed. two decades to pursue peace and reconcili- Oport plane swooped out of the skies Yet the AU Mission in Somalia, bet- ation. Today, a semblance of normality has over Mogadishu. On board were a handful ter known by the acronym AMISOM has returned to the capital. Its once deserted of senior Ugandan officers, the vanguard of “performed better than anyone would have streets are bustling with activity; homes, the latest attempt by the international com- dreamed,” according to Peter Pham, direc- markets and schools are being rebuilt. Resi- munity to pacify Somalia’s anarchic capital. tor of the Africa program at the Atlantic dents can now venture to its scenic beaches, Over a decade earlier, in the aftermath of Council, a Washington research institution. once no-go zones, and take a dip in the warm the infamous “Black Hawk Down” incident, With just a third of the troops available to waters of the Indian Ocean. a UN peacekeeping force had been forced the UN mission, AMISOM has forced the Al None of this was fathomable four years into a humiliating withdrawal from the city Qaeda-affiliated terror group, al Shabaab, to ago. In fact, on their first night in Mogadi- and few dared to believe that a tiny and un- flee the city, put a damper on the activities shu, the 400 AMISOM troops, the first of derequipped African force could succeed of Mogadishu’s infamous warlords and pre- two battalions promised by Uganda, had to

8 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW endure mortar attacks from the extremists Following the withdrawal of Ethiopian forces back into AMISOM-protected areas. and relied on the protection of Ethiopian and forces in January 2009, AMISOM which Following a year of indecisive battles as the Somali troops. Over the course of the next had given priority to the security of key in- extremists attempted to take control of the three years, the force grew in strength but, stallations in the capital, namely the airport, entire city and the TFG tried to recapture though joined by troops from Burundi in seaport, Presidential palace and later the the areas it had lost, the outlook was grim in December 2007, remained substantially be- strategic KM4 junction, increasingly be- May 2010. “We have driven out the govern- low its authorised strength of 8000. It was came a target of extremist attacks. A double ment from the north of Mogadishu,” Sheik also hamstrung by a restrictive interpreta- suicide bombing in February left 11 dead Ali Mohammed Rage, al-Shabaab’s spokes- tion of the rules of engagement which meant and 15 injured. Another in September killed man, declared. “Now our next step is to cap- AMISOM could only fire when fired upon 17, including Deputy Force Commander, ture the palace.” or in defence of the Transitional Govern- Brigadier General Juvenal Niyoyunguruza. The twin bombings in Kampala, in which ment established by Somalia’s decade-long In May, the extremists had launched an of- the al Shabaab murdered 76 people watch- peace process. fensive to retake Mogadishu, pushing TFG ing the soccer World Cup Finals in July that

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 9 year, changed everything. In their aftermath, dential Palace to K4 and Mogadishu airport. the Burundian contingent, for example, the Inter-Governmental Authority on De- Further east, Urubah Hotel in Shangani deployed to Hoshi, which guards the south- velopment resolved to send a further 2000 district, Bondere, Fish barre and Juba Hotel western route into the city, in support of troops, and the AU Summit reinterpreted in Abdul Aziz district were also secured. Transitional Federal Government troops AMISOM’s rules of engagement to allow Burundian forces controlled the AMISOM there who had come under attack from the for pre-emptive defence, meaning AMISOM bases in Hodan, Dharkenley, and Wadajir Shabaab. The location was critical to secur- could finally take the fight to the militants. districts. ing the neighbourhood of Medina, and also Soon after, AMISOM began a methodical In late August, as the Islamic holy month served to extend the defences of the Moga- advance across the city. of Ramadan got underway, the al Shabaab dishu National University campus where the

By mid-August, half of the IGAD-backed launched what they called the “termi- contingent had its main base. troops had been inserted into Mogadishu nal offensive” declaring they would drive By early September, AMISOM had occu- and, AMISOM, now with more than 7000 AMISOM out of Somalia and erase the TFG pied eight new positions in areas of Moga- soldiers had established seven new positions presence. However, the opposite proved to dishu previously under the control of armed in the south-western and southern part of be the case as AMISOM and TFG forces opposition groups and by the end of the year, Mogadishu. The Uganda contingent opened not only beat back the attacks, but actually more than two dozen AMISOM combat out- up new positions at Immigration, Shakara, secured key positions. Many of the new posts dotted the city map. Terebunka, Sigale and Parliament. This ac- AMISOM bases tend to reinforce the secu- The failure of the Ramadan offensive left tion helped in effectively securing the key rity of already-established bases and civil- the al Shabaab severely weakened, having Makka Al Mukarama road linking the Presi- ian areas of the capital. One company from taken hundreds of casualties while achiev-

10 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW ing little in terms of strategic gains. They amplified clan divisions and splits between the group’s nationalist and internationalist elements over command, the policy of de- nying access to humanitarian organizations trying to help the suffering population in central and south Somalia, and the role of foreign fighters. Though with the support of the IGAD re-

inforcements the TFG had managed to gain ground and now controlled nearly half of the capital’s 16 districts. But, with the limited number of troops, AMISOM was unable to capitalize on this to push the extremists out of the city altogether. However, as the AMISOM strength continued to grow, that day was now not far off. AMISOM was keenly aware that insurgencies could not be defeated by purely

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 11 military means and that the key to success the extremists’ brutal reign, to government- been identified in de-populated areas, mini- lay in winning the support of the people of controlled territory where security and busi- mising the risk of civilian harm, and never Mogadishu. With this in mind, its military ness were slowly improving. in a purely retaliatory role. AMISOM also operations increasingly adopted a humani- AMISOM also took seriously its obliga- took action against its soldiers when they tarian component. Not only was the mis- tion to avoid causing harm to non-combat- were found to have caused harm to civilians. sion providing free medical care to more ants, and minimising civilian casualties was Following two incidents, in November, 2010 than 12,000 civilians every month, it also a guiding principle for the planning and and January 2011, in which civilians were supplied over 120,000 litres of safe drink- conduct of all operations. Operationally, wounded, three AMISOM soldiers were ing water per day to Somalis living near AMISOM issued clear guidelines on the use sentenced to two years in prison. AMISOM camps. The TFG and AMISOM of indirect fire weapons like mortars and These efforts were paying off. A poll car- gains in Mogadishu had also created a safe artillery, establishing no-fire zones around ried out in all the districts of the capital, in- haven for thousands of Somalis. Many were population centres and markets, schools, cluding areas of the city under the control voting with their feet by moving in ever larg- hospitals and mosques. Such weaponry was of the armed opposition groups, and the Af- er numbers from al Shabaab areas, fleeing only employed where a specific target had gooye corridor, and released by the Moga-

12 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW push the al Shabaab out of the entire south- Pockets of extremists, however, remained in western section of the city, including Bakara Daynille and to the north east of the capital Market, by far the largest commercial hub in from where they launched a terror campaign Mogadishu. The loss of the market would be against the population utilising suicide, ve- a mortal blow for the extremists since they hicle and roadside bombs. In one attack in depended on extortion from businesses there early October, a truck bomb at the Ministry to fund their activities in the city. of Education killed over 100 people, most The AMISOM operations resulted in the of them students applying for scholarships. Burundian contingent’s capture of the al However, again with the help of Mogadishu Shabaab’s main logistical and operational residents, most of the devices, and some of base located at the former Ministry of De- the culprits, are being found before they can fence building at Gashandigga, the former maim and kill. In one ten-day period, tips Milk Factory as well as the Damanyo Mili- from the public led to over 15 bombs being tary Camp and the African Village, giving found and diffused. AMISOM full control of Hodan district, In early October, the Ugandan forces cap- Terebunka Road, and the western access tured the remaining parts of Heliwa, Karaan routes into the Market, and in the process in- and Yaqshid districts. Two weeks later, the hibiting the al Shabaab’s ability to reinforce Burundian contingent advanced on Dayni- its fighters from its base in Dayniile. ile. Despite suffering significant casualties, In June, they linked up with the Ugandan they nonetheless secured an area of about 6 contingent, which had overrun the al Sha- kilometres, the largest swathe of territory to baab command positions on the southern be taken by AMISOM in one single battle edge of the market, capturing Wadnaha since its deployment in 2007. AMISOM for road, a vital city artery, which had for a long the first time advanced beyond the city lim- time been closed to civilian traffic by the its in late January 2012, taking Mogadishu insurgents, who had dug trenches across it. University and Barakaat Cemetery in an It also completely secured Bondere district operation to push the extremists from their from where the extremists used to shell Villa remaining outposts. Somalia, the seat of government. Within the capital, much has been done to That same month, TFG troops killed the improve security. The Joint Security Com- leader of Al Qaeda in East Africa, Fazul Mo- mittee, composed of representatives of the hammed, at a checkpoint on the city’s out- TFG, AMISOM and the international com- skirts. Fazul, one of the world’s most wanted munity, met for the first time in Mogadishu men, and the alleged mastermind behind the less than three weeks after the al Shabaab 1998 bombings of US embassies in Kenya withdrawal. Further, a National Security and Tanzania which killed 224 people, had and Stabilization Plan has been drafted and been on the run for over a decade. finalized with input from regional stake- His death was a significant blow to the al holders, Puntland, Galmudug and the Ahlu Shabaab who were looking to extend their Sunna Waljamaa. operations and carry out attacks abroad. Today, AMISOM continues to grow in Confirmation of this came in the form of a strength. The advance party of a new bat- handwritten terror hit-list found on Fazul’s talion from Djibouti has already arrived in dishu Media House, an independent media body which included world-famous hotels in Mogadishu, with the rest of the troops ex- centre, showed that 75 percent of respon- London. pected shortly. The Further expansion of dents rated AMISOM and the AU as friends On the 28 July 2011, Florenza Junction, in AMISOM, however, is now dependent on the of the Somali people. the environs of Bakara market was taken by UN Security Council approving and financ- In early 2011, the TFG and its allies, the AMISOM. The battle for Florenza was one ing the AU request to raise the AMISOM Ahlu Sunna Waljamaa, a Sufi clan militia of the fiercest in a long time. Heavy gunfire ceiling to 17,700 troops. With Kenya and opposed to al Shabaab, opened up a new raged on for four days, the longest battle Sierra Leone waiting in the wings to join, it front against the insurgents in the south- since the capture of Gashandiga. Ugandan will hopefully not be long until AMISOM is central regions of Gedo, Bakool and Lower forces effectively cut off the Armed Forces able to expand out of the city and to secure Jubba on the Kenyan border. This coin- Road, leaving the market undefendable and the rest of the country. g cided with a renewed push in the capital by exposing Mogadishu Stadium, the only re- AMISOM, whose mandated strength had maining extremist stronghold. The writer is the AMISOM now been raised to 12,000 by the UN Secu- Ten days later, on the morning of 6 August, Force Spokesman in Mogadishu rity Council. The advance was designed to the al Shabaab fled from most of Mogadishu.

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 13 Learning on the job By Maj. Gen. Nathan Mugisha

MISOM troops have had to learn used mortars and artillery in support of their in the capital. The trenches often came to an and adjust to the realities of wag- ground operations against AMISOM, caus- end next to massive stone and concrete pil- Aing a counter-insurgency campaign ing civilian casualties. lars which had been further reinforced with in an urban environment with very limited A further hurdle to AMISOM was the sandbags, affording the militants effective resources. Many of our soldiers were expe- limited fighting capacity of the Somali gov- protection as they fired on AMISOM and rienced fighters, having taken part in op- ernment forces. This meant that AMISOM TFG troops. The insurgents were also dig- erations against armed insurgencies in their had to take the lead in the campaign, with ging and disguising anti-tank ditches in an own countries. However, most of these op- the TFG troops in support – a reversal of effort to prevent AMISOM from using its erations were undertaken in rural areas and the intended situation. AMISOM has at- armour. over open terrain. Fighting armed insurgent tempted to remedy this through provision of To counter this, AMISOM tactics also had groups in built-up areas of Mogadishu has training to the Somali soldiers, both at the to evolve. Our troops implemented a ‘creep- presented a different set of challenges and Al Jazeera training facility in Somalia, and ing’ tactic, which involves flanking buildings the soldiers have had to adapt accordingly. also, with the support of the EU, at the Ugan- containing insurgents and smoking out the Recognising this from early on, AMISOM da People’s Defence Forces training base in fighters or forcing them to retreat. AMISOM instituted pre-deployment training. This in- Bihanga, Uganda. Some 5,000 Somali sol- troops would then occupy and consolidate cludes training in countering Improvised diers have either completed or are currently their hold – always checking first for booby Explosive Devices, radio communications, undertaking courses at the latter facility and traps – before targeting the next compound, infantry and medical First Aid, and Fight- will form the core of a revitalised Somali all the while using mouse holes to facilitate ing in Built-up Areas. Considering that the National Army. However, the organisational their movements. The tactic was particularly mission area is home to millions of innocent difficulties, untrained commanders, alleged effective in Hawal Wadaag and Wardigle civilians, and that the insurgent groups op- corruption and limited resources of the TFG districts where AMISOM forces were occu- erate and fire from within populated areas, continue to undermine this effort. Somali pying new positions on an almost daily basis the troops are also trained in aspects of in- troop morale is affected by low and irregular throughout the spring of 2011. ternational humanitarian and human rights pay – though the situation significantly im- However, this tactic relied on having law. Operationally, AMISOM has also is- proved in 2011. enough troop numbers to guarantee that the sued clear guidelines on the use of mortar In terms of tactics, the delay in deploy- positions were not retaken by the insurgents. and artillery, and established no-fire zones ing adequate troop numbers and equip- In particular, it required combat engineers to within the city. ment, coupled with the continued infusion help clear mines and booby-traps, and routes One challenge for AMISOM was the al of foreign fighters with experience and skills for heavy armour. It also needed aerial ca- Shabaab’s use of mortars from within ci- gained from other theatres especially, though pability, Further, AMISOM continues to be vilian areas – a tactic designed to provoke not exclusively, in the Middle East, saw the hampered by the lack of an aerial capability, a similar response from AMISOM. In a insurgency take on an increasing sophistica- especially attack helicopters, to provide pro- typical scenario, insurgent casualties are tion. One of the more remarkable develop- tection to troops and to interdict the extrem- extracted from a fire-fight with AMISOM ments was the use of a network of tunnels ists’ movement, as well as an air reconnais- and taken to a civilian area, where fighters and trenches to move their fighters around sance capability which would allow more set tyres alight to obscure observation; they undetected. As AMISOM troops took new accurately mapping of enemy territory. g then fire at AMISOM with mortars to pro- ground, they uncovered these extensive net- voke a response. However, since AMISOM works which carve through the walls and The author is the immediate former does not engage in counter-battery, the in- floors of deserted buildings, minimising the AMISOM Force Commander. A version surgents were known to fire on their own need for fighters to travel in the street and of this article was first published as part of casualties and then claim that AMISOM is over open ground during the house-to-house ‘The Way Forward in Somalia’ in the RUSI responsible for killing ‘civilians’. They also fighting that often characterised the conflict Journal (Vol. 156, No. 3, June/July 2011)

14 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW n the early hours of August 9, 1942, Ad- miral Gunichi Mikawa, an up-and-com- Iing Japanese admiral known for his intelligence and sound judgment, led the Japanese 8th fleet into the waters off Guadalcanal and, in a little under one hour, inflicted the worst defeat the American Navy had ever suffered. However, the Battle of Savo Island is today more remembered for Admiral Mikawa’s in- explicable decision, just as complete victory and the routing of the American forces on Guadalcanal was imminent, to break off the attack and head for home. It would prove to Beyond be a crucial strategic mistake for the Japanese as it allowed the Allies to maintain their foot- hold on Guadalcanal and eventually emerge Mogadishu victorious from the campaign. 70 years later, a similar opportunity has By Maj. Gen. Fred Mugisha presented itself for the world to defeat the agents of terror and extremism on the Horn of facilitate the rehatting of the Kenyan troops are sorely needed if AMISOM is to accom- Africa. Last year’s expulsion from the Somali in the south. plish the task that the world has given it. capital, Mogadishu, of the Al Qaeda-affiliated Even given this increase in AMISOM’s Today, the enemy has been severely weak- terrorist group, the al Shabaab, was a critical strength, structural changes, especially in the ened by the defeat in Mogadishu and the Ke- turning point in the country’s decades-long way AMISOM is financed, will be required nyan and Ethiopian interventions. In the capi- conflict. Achieved, in the face of innumerable if success is to be assured. In January, the tal, AMISOM officers and men have been odds, by Somali government forces with the Security Council recognised the importance privileged to witness the people of Mogadi- support of the African Union mission in So- of providing reliable and timely resources to shu begin to once again enjoy a life removed malia, that success now allows us to turn our AMISOM and called for the international from the alien and brutal strictures imposed focus to securing the rest of the country. community to provide uncaveated support by the extremists. Scenes of people taking a In the rest of the south, the al Shabaab con- to AMISOM in order for it to fulfil its man- walk on formerly deserted beaches, or enjoy- tinue to pose a grave threat, not only to the date. However, the current funding structure, ing a game of football –banned under the ex- Somali people and their efforts to foster rec- which partially relies on voluntary donations, tremists are enough to warm anyone’s heart. onciliation and overcome years of anarchy, but is no longer fit for purpose. The international However, the war is yet to be won. Past in- also to the region as a whole. This threat has community is now called upon to demon- terventions have shown that gains in the bat- prompted military interventions by Kenya and strate its commitment to the success of this tlefield are reversible and failure to reinforce Ethiopia in support of the Transitional Federal vital mission by fully funding it from core, and consolidate in good time only allows the Government. As a result, the al Shabaab are assessed contributions. extremists an opportunity to regroup. This, possibly at the weakest they have been in four This would not only inject predictability therefore, is the time to press forward the years, and 2012 presents a real possibility of into the planning process, but by guarantee- advantage and complete the job. Otherwise, vanquishing them and restoring a measure of ing reimbursement for contingent-owned like the Japanese all those years ago, we risk security in the areas they now control. equipment, it would encourage countries to snatching defeat from the jaws of a certain This is an opportunity that must not be contribute their prized air and naval assets. victory. g wasted. Exploiting it, however, requires that As UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon not- The author is the the world act in unison to deliver the re- ed following his recent visit to Somalia, these AMISOM Force Commander sources and expertise necessary. Today, the achievements of AMISOM’s Burundian and Ugandan contingents in Mogadishu have emboldened other African countries to come forward and offer up their troops. At the end of last year, the Force was proud to welcome its third contingent, from Djibouti, which begun to deploy a battalion in the capital. In the near future, it is to be hoped that the United Nations Security Council will accede to the AU’s request to expand AMISOM’s current troop limit from 12,000 to 17,700 in order to

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 15 he arrival of Djiboutian forces in deployment of its Mogadishu last December marked first battalion by sev- Tthe beginning of a new era for the AU eral months in 2007, Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). And as the citing a lack of equip- mission increasingly takes on a regional and ment. Its second bat- continental character, its current funding talion was similarly structure will also need to change. delayed. In fact, it Djibouti is the third African country to took nearly four years deploy soldiers under AMISOM, which is for AMISOM to get striving to consolidate its achievements in the 8,000 troops it the Somali capital. AMISOM already has was supposed to have nearly 10,000 troops in Mogadishu, only originally deployed about 2,000 short of the maximum its cur- with. rent UN mandate allows it to have. In June 2009, the With other countries lining up to join, in- UN Security Council cluding Kenya, which has troops in the south authorised a logisti- Looking the part chasing after the al Shabaab terror group cal support package whom it blames for a spate of kidnappings of for AMISOM which is drawn from core as- rundi contingents and with the entry of Dji- Western tourists and aid workers that threat- sessed contributions from member states. It bouti, it is estimated that by March 2012 the ened its lucrative tourism industry, and Sierra also authorised the establishment of a Trust arrears will be around $9.4 million. The Ke- Leone, which has a battalion in training. The Fund to collect voluntary contributions for ar- nyans would stretch the deficit even further. AU in January asked the UN Security Council eas not covered by the package -mainly reim- A rough comparison of operational costs to raise AMISOM’s troop ceiling to 17,700 to bursement for Contingent Owned Equipment. of other UN missions reveals that in the allow for the rehatting of the Kenyan troops. This arrangement is at odds with normal UN financial year 2010-11, AMISOM was sig- During his recent visit to Mogadishu, UN peace-keeping procedures where the “rental” nificantly underfunded. Though allowances Secretary-General commended AMISOM cost of equipment is reimbursed via non-vol- are identical, AMISOM with 9000 troops troops for doing “a tremendous job in very untary, or core, assessed contributions. receives almost a quarter less funding for difficult circumstances,” and backed up the The voluntary nature of the Trust fund operational costs than the UN Mission in Li- AU’s request for AMISOM to be provided with the necessary equipment - such as helicopters - to achieve its mission. However, Neigbourhood Watch for this to happen, the mission will need to Somalia’s neighbours had been barred from participating in a previously contemplated be funded in a more consistent and predict- mission in support of the peace process. In December 2006, the UN Security Council able manner. authorised the deployment of an IGAD mission, IGASOM, but stipulated that neighbour- AMISOM contingents are deployed ac- ing countries were to stay out. However, when the Council approved AMISOM’s deploy- cording to the “Burundi Model,” borrowed ment in place of IGASOM, these clauses were dropped. Further, though the 2008 Djibouti from the AU Mission in Burundi, where the Agreement which currently forms the basis of the peace process specifically called the Troop Contributing Countries were to shoul- AU to deploy a stabilization force “excluding neighbouring states,” this does not apply to der the costs of deployment. Contingents were AMISOM since the force was already deployed in Mogadishu. In any case, the parties to expected to be self-sustaining for the duration that agreement now form the TFG and have requested neighbouring states to intervene. of the mission, including providing for the equipment and services they would need with the promise of eventual reimbursement. means donations are intermittent, unpredict- beria (8,069 troops)and nearly 70% less than However, the narrowly resourced AU able and, on the whole, insufficient. Worse, the UN Mission in Sudan (9,450 troops). does not have the wherewithal to fulfil this many contributions come earmarked for The delays in reimbursement for equip- obligation. AMISOM is therefore dependent purposes that may not be fit the bill. Up to ment have meant that countries have been on the international community for finan- 40% 0f the $40.8 million donated to the trust reluctant to send expensive air assets such cial, technical and logistical support. For ex- fund by August 2011 was caveated. As a re- as helicopters which AMISOM desperately ample, every AMISOM soldier is paid $1028 sult, though there was money in the fund, the needs. Moving away from a voluntary re- per month under AU/EU strategic partner- contingents had not been reimbursed since gime to one where AMISOM is financed ship agreement which has to date provided March because the funding was earmarked from the UN assessed budget is the way to over $267 million to cover these allowances for the AMISOM civilian and police compo- ensure that African countries will not only as well as civilian operational costs. nents who ironically could not fully utilize it continue to contribute troops, but will also A reliance on bilateral donors has resulted due to security conditions in Mogadishu. The be comfortable providing the equipment in delayed deployments. For example, despite monthly reimbursement rate currently stands needed to ensure AMISOM can fulfil its being technically ready, Burundi delayed the at around $700,000 for the Uganda and Bu- mandate. g

16 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW must be urgently reinforced and given the resources it needs to adequately and effectively protect the population in the city and to expand the gains to other areas of the country. AMISOM commanders estimate that they will need 17,700 troops for the next phase of operations and African countries are stepping up. Last December, the mission welcomed its third contingent, a battalion from Djibouti. With Kenya, which already has troops in the south, accepting the AU invitation to rehat them as AMISOM, and Burundi planning to insert another battalion, AMISOM has now been offered more troops than currently allowed under the UN mandate. It is therefore critical that the Security Council takes the right decision on the troop ceiling urgently, as indeed it committed to do once the limit was A moment of fresh reached. Further, the mission needs to be financed in a predictable and guaranteed fash- ion and given the necessary force enablers, opportunities including air assets such as helicopters, a ma- rine capability and engineering capabilities. By Wafula Wamunyinyi As AMISOM secures the ground, there is, too, an urgent need to continue to build ust beyond the terminal at Mogadishu’s but now at 12,000 troops. This is still far less up the capacity of the Transitional Federal Aden Abdulleh International Airport than the 28,000 deployed under the second Government to deliver services to its people Jsits a rusty, hulking wreck of a plane. It United Nations Operation In Somalia (UN- and improve governance. Functional institu- has been there since 2007, shot down as it at- OSOM II) with a similar task in 1993. tions are a prerequisite for long-term stabil- tempted to deliver equipment to the first batch Even the way the mission is resourced is ity and budget-support must be provided for of African Union troops deploying into the unique. For example, nowhere else is there training programmes together with quick im- Somali capital. It was an inauspicious start a UN-mandated peace operation that has no pact projects. AMISOM’s civilian and police to a mission that has today helped provide support from the air; no aircraft for battlefield components have made strides in training and Somalia with the best opportunity it has had reconnaissance, transport or ground support. mentoring Somalia’s civil servants and police in two decades to achieve lasting peace. To- Though since 2009, AMISOM has been sup- officers and these efforts need to be comple- day, as sleek passenger jets taxi past, bringing ported logistically and technically by the UN, mented by greater international engagement ever increasing numbers of visitors, it stands the funds do not always come from the UN and assistance. as a reminder of just how much things have assessed budget. Rather the mission is forced In his short and famous speech at Gettys- changed. One recent guest, UN Secretary- to also rely on voluntary donations by indi- burg honouring the sacrifices made on that General Ban Ki-moon, summed it up perfect- vidual nations which are neither predictable great battlefield of the American Civil War, ly. “A few years ago, people tended to think of nor sustained nor guaranteed. The AMISOM Abraham Lincoln called on his young na- Somalia as a place of famine or bloodshed,” Trust Fund, set up to receive such contribu- tion “to be dedicated here to the unfinished he said. “We finally face a moment of fresh tions has for example not reimbursed con- work which they who fought here have thus opportunities. We must seize it.” tingents for the use of their equipment since far so nobly advanced.” Those words are as It is easy to forget that when the United Na- March. true of Somalia today. The shattered wreck at tions Security Council, the body which bears The success in Mogadishu has come at the airport is a monument to the price fellow the primary responsibility for the preserva- considerable cost to the Ugandan and Bu- Africans have paid for Somalia’s “moment of tion of global peace, mandated the African rundian soldiers who have borne the brunt fresh opportunities.” The sacrifices they have Union to deploy a peace support mission to of the struggle to erase the menace of violent made on all our behalf must not be in vain. g Somalia, few gave it much chance of success. extremism from Somalia. The gains made, Bigger and better resourced interventions though remarkable, remain fragile, as the re- The author is the had already failed to stabilize the country. cent terrorist bombing campaign has shown. Deputy Special Representative of the AMISOM deployed with few troops, and With the help of the local community, many Chairperson of the AU Commission on even fewer resources. For much of the time it of the improvised explosive devices and car Somalia. A version of this article was first has been in Somalia, it has been significantly bombs are being found and disposed of before published in The EastAfrican (Issue No. below its mandated strength, initially 8000 they can kill and maim. However, AMISOM 895, 26 December 2011 – 1 January 2012)

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 17 hen, in December 2010, 41 year- well as foreign aid workers - including those old Canadian citizen, Mike Spen- from Turkey - basing themselves in Moga- Wcer Bown, a seasoned traveller dishu. who had visited more than 150 countries, The influx of people is having a big effect arrived at the Aden Adde International Air- on the city. Streets that were once deserted port in Mogadishu asking for a tourist visa, are today bustling with life. Thanks to the shocked officials tried to put him back on the municipal authorities, markets have been re- plane. A year later, arrivals at the airport are opened and business is brisk. The city is also up 25%, many of them families returning for seeing a boom in real estate. House prices the first time from North America. It is testa- along Via Moscow, one of the city’s thor- ment to how much thing have changed in the oughfares, have doubled. Homes destroyed city over the period. by years of conflict are now being renovat- Ever since the Somali National Army, ed and water and electricity companies are with the support of the African Union Mis- sending sales representatives door-to-door sion in Somalia, expelled the Al Qaeda-affil- in hopes of signing up new customers. iated terror group, the al Shabaab from most In the past, few world or business leaders of Mogadishu in August, the capital has would have even considered a stopover visit been experiencing something of resurgence. to Mogadishu as worth the risk. In the last For the first time in two decades, an interna- six months, however, the city has hosted a tionally recognised government controls all state visit by Turkish Prime Minister Recep but a few pockets of the city and optimism Tayyip Erodgan, who brought his wife and is running high that the country may have daughter, four of his cabinet ministers and turned a corner. their families as well as planeloads of jour- A report by the BBC cites aid workers nalists, celebrities and businessmen; Prince estimating that 300,000 people previously Waleed bin Talal, the Saudi billionaire; and displaced by the conflict in the city have Ban Ki-moon, the first United Nations Sec- since returned to their homes. The city is retary-General to visit in 18 years. A number also playing host to thousands of internally of countries have also reopened their embas- displaced people who fled the famine in the sies and the UN’s Political Office for Soma- al Shabaab controlled areas of the south, as lia is relocating its staff to the city.

Other organisations have also taken advantage of the prevailing security situation to help Somalis, whose overall humanitarian situation remains dire. International aid agencies are now feeding over 2.6 million across the country and much of that aid is coming in through the capital. The Inter- national Rescue Committee in December opened its second medical facility in Moga- dishu on the grounds of one of the city’s old- est clinics, built in the early 1960s but destroyed in 1990. The new facility will serve some 22,000 displaced people in the immediate area, relieving pressure on the city’s overcrowded central Banadir hospital. Prior to the overthrow of Siad Barre and the anarchy that followed, Mogadishu was known as the “pearl of the Indian Ocean,” -a favourite tourist haunt. Many would flock to

18 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW A city stirs the scenic Lido beach for a spot of sun and ship. A far cry from the days when sports- of Mogadishu are helping authorities find the a dip in the warm waters. Today, it is once men and women were forced to train under bombs and would-be bombers before they can again packed every Friday - a day of rest in the watchful eye of security officers tasked do their evil work. Using a hotline set up by the Muslim country. This time, however, it to safeguard them from the terrorists. the TFG to collect anonymous tips, the city’s is local families taking advantage of the im- However, as Mogadishu reawakens, it residents have been providing vital informa- proved security to enjoy themselves. is also experiencing problems common tion to Somali security agencies which has Sports, banned under the al Shabaab, are to other capitals around the world. Traffic led to the majority of attacks being foiled. making a comeback too. In December a ten- jams along the busy streets are a perennial Back at the Aden Adde International Air- day football tournament with teams repre- headache and crime rates are up, accord- port, the Turks are spending $150 million senting all of Mogadishu’s 16 districts was ing to Mayor Mohammed Nur “Tarsan.” to help renovate the facility. Just in time held at the Koonis stadium, a former Sha- AMISOM’s Police Component is helping to too. Over the course of the year, the aver- baab training ground. The final, which saw train the Somali police force, now number- age number of fights per month has risen by the Darkeynley district team dispatch their ing over 5000, to manage these challenges. 54% and more carriers, including Turkish Yaqshid district rivals by a single goal, was A further challenge is the campaign of ter- Airlines, are looking to add Mogadishu to watched by an estimated 50,000 spectators ror that the remnants of the al Shabaab have their list of destinations in 2012. In the com- including President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh been attempting to carry out. In October, a ing months and years, if the peace holds, the Ahmed. Less than a month later, 85 athletes truck bombing near the populous K4 inter- idea of tourists coming to Mogadishu will representing 6 clubs participated in the 27th section murdered over 100 people, most of perhaps not be regarded as preposterous as edition of the Somali Athletics Champion- them young students. However, the people it was a year ago. g

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 19 ...A Thousand Words 2011 produced many unforgettable images. Here are a few of them

20 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 21 22 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 23 24 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 25 hroughout the two-decade conflict Mogadishu International Airport was closed preferred to land and depart from the K50 in Somalia, the fortunes of the Aden for 11 years as the country descended into Airport, about 50km south of the capital, in TAdde International Airport have been anarchy following the departure of the failed Lower Shabelle. closely entwined with those of the capital, UN peacekeeping mission in 1995. It was AMISOM took over control of the airport Mogadishu. This has proven true in 2011. reopened in July 2006, during the brief pe- on 11 March, 2008, just six days after its first As security in the city has dramatically riod of calm that followed the takeover of soldiers arrived to a fiery welcome from ex- improved, the numbers of passengers and Mogadishu by the Islamic Courts Union tremists’ mortars. The dangers of landing at flights into the airport have also dramati- and, a month later, regular flights had re- the airport were soon graphically illustrated cally increased. The airport welcomed world sumed. However, the Ethiopian invasion and when just 3 days later, a Soviet-era Ilyushin leaders and was the focal point for the inter- the extremist insurgency that followed soon Il-76 Belarusian cargo plane -chartered to national response to the famine that hit the put a stop to that. As pitched battles were deliver the soldiers’ equipment - was forced country in mid-year. fought in and around the capital, the Moga- to make an emergency landing after it was Built by the Italians in the 1940s, the dishu airport fell into disuse as most airlines hit by a rocket-propelled grenade believed

26 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW Flying high

port, renamed in June 2008 after Somalia’s those aircraft which originate from here,” he first President, continued to be a target for told the AMISOM Review. the extremists. Three years later, however, SKA’s contract includes managing the the situation could not be more different. By passenger terminals, security screening and December, the average number of fights per passenger security. The company, which has month had risen to 380, with a peak of 470 operations at airports throughout Iraq, Af- in August, at the height of the famine relief ghanistan and Kuwait, says it has already in- effort, of over 470 flights per month. vested over $2M in equipment for the airport The number of airlines flying into Moga- ground handling including deck loaders, dishu also increased during the year. In baggage tugs, an aircraft push back tractor, June, Fly 540 through its subsidiary, East a 200Kva generator and, beginning January, African Safari Air Express, became the sec- 2 passenger buses. ond Kenyan designated carrier to fly into All departing passengers and their bag- Mogadishu, following African Express Air- gage now have to go through rigorous se- ways. By the end of the year, Fly 540 had curity checks including X-Ray baggage added an extra flight a week and there are scanners and walk-through metal detec- plans for daily flights this year. Others with tors. Two pioneering Somali dog handlers flights into the capital include Somali-owned along with explosives detection dogs, have private carriers Jubba Airways and Daallo been deployed at the airport’s main luggage Airlines, in addition to UN charter planes. bay, mirroring standard practice at airports Interest in flying to the Somali capital is across the world. growing. Turkish Airlines has already an- Serious security challenges remain. Ter- nounced that it will begin flying to Moga- rorist cells in and around the city have dishu early this year. In November 2009, launched a campaign of bombings and the United Arab Emirates signed an “Open though the airport has not been attacked Skies” agreement with Somalia and now since September 2010, it is no secret that there are planned visits by Fly Dubai and the it remains an attractive target. On that oc- Emirates’ General Civil Aviation Authority, casion, at least 9 people were killed when to assess the security and operational capa- suicide attackers managed to penetrate the bility of the airport. Uganda’s Civil Avia- main airport gate –following a car bomb– tion Authority visited the airport last year but were stopped before they could reach the and confirmed their willingness to accept main terminal building, the present security measures for passenger Still, there remain good reasons to be op- flights originating in Mogadishu. timistic about the future. The Turkish gov- to have been fired from a small boat as it Anthony Randerson, Station Manager for ernment has pledged to spend $150 million was approaching over the sea. According to SKA Air and Logistics, which has signed to upgrade the facility including the con- a report by the Aviation Safety Network, a a 10-year agreement with the Transitional struction of a new terminal with spacious fire erupted, causing smoke inside the plane. Government of Somalia to bring the airport departure and arrival halls and 14 new gates The airplane landed safely with no lives into compliance with international stan- with jetway bridges. It will also upgrade the lost. However, it took about one hour for the dards, is sure that, once the first direct flight runway, build a new tower for air traffic con- only fire-fighting truck available at the air- has been authorised by a respected Civil trol as well as a fuel depot, power station and port to reach the plane as it had no fuel. Just Aviation Authority, then others will look aircraft hangars. Given these, and the con- two weeks later, a second Il-76, which had much more favourably on flights originating tinuing improvements in the security situa- brought equipment to repair the first, was in Mogadishu. “We are currently working tion in Mogadishu, Aden Adde International shot down on takeoff, killing all 11 persons hard on producing the standards required by Airport looks set to welcome many new ar- on board. the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority to elimi- rivals in 2012. g Even after the AMISOM takeover, the air- nate the requirement to stop in Wajir, for

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 27 n the latter half of 2011, Somalia was thrust into the international spotlight. IFollowing the declaration of famine and the eviction of the al Shabaab terrorists, the capital played host to world leaders, celebrities and international journalists. In July, just as the UN declared a famine in three regions of the country including the capital, former Ghanaian President and AU High Representative, Jerry Rawlings, arrived for his first tour of the city. Two weeks later, the al Shabaab terrorists had been forced to leave the city and, with the famine spreading, a raft of international journalists soon beat a path to Mogadishu. In the first half of August, the AMISOM hosted visits by most major international news networks including the BBC, ABC, MSNBC, Al Jazeera, CNN International, Man of the Year Germany’s , Frankfurter Allegemeine Zei- tung , ITV News, Associated Press, AFP, and Getty Images. CNN alone did more than 50 live reports from Mogadishu during their stay. Visiting print journalists devoted nearly 14,000 words to the situation in the city and over 80 photographs were published in vari- cabinet ministers, and a plane-load of Turkish Commissioner, Ramtane Lamamra in tow. ous international outlets. journalists. Visits by Saudi Prince and CEO of Kingdom Mogadishu had not been bathed in such at- Within weeks of the visit, Turkey had be- Holding Company, His Royal Highness Al- tention for nearly two decades. And where the come the 6th country to open an embassy in waleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, who media led, the politicians were sure to follow. the city, and had helped fix the road between also chairs the Alwaleed Humanitarian Foun- On August 17th, British International Devel- the airport and Villa Somalia, the seat of gov- dation, and award-winning Somali-Canadian opment Minister, Andrew Mitchell, became ernment. The Turks obviously made an im- rapper, K’naan, closed out the month of Au- the first UK Minister to visit the city in over pression. According to Prime Minister Abdi- gust. 18 years. Two days later, Mogadishu was weli Ali, in the aftermath of the Erdogan visit, Kenyan Foreign and Defence Ministers decked out in flags as Somalia hosted its first Istanbul became a popular name for girls in flew into town in October to discuss the mili- state visit to in more than two decades when Mogadishu. tary incursion into southern Somalia and, in Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdo- Erdogan was closely followed by the December, Ban Ki-moon made history as the gan, arrived for a two-day stay in Mogadishu Chairman of the AU Commission, Jean Ping, first UN Secretary-General to visit Mogadi- Erdogan, accompanied by his family, five who turned up with AU Peace and Security shu since Boutros Boutros-Ghali in 1993. g

Coming to Mogadishu

28 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW orn and schooled in Mogadishu, Mohamed Nur “Tarsan,” the managed to make huge strides in all these areas. Though resources current Mayor of the Somali capital, had fled with his fam- are stretched thin, he has mobilized the city’s residents to clean up Bily to the UK at the start of Somalia’s two decade civil war. the streets and the electric companies to light them. Markets are bus- However, a phone call from President Sheikh Sharif summoned him tling and, working with security agencies and AMISOM, neighbour- back to help rebuild the benighted city. hood watch teams are helping secure the city from infiltration by ter- In the summer of 2010, the former business advisor to Islington rorists. However, much more remains to be done. And the Mayor is Council in north London, who holds a degree in Management from not resting on his laurels. He has recently drawn up a new four-year University of Westminster, returned to Mogadishu to head a munici- plan he calls the Mogadishu City’s Business Plan, which is intended pality that only had $128 in its treasury and whose 1,000 employees to free Mogadishu from dependence on foreign handouts. had not been paid in months. However, the Mayor has said he would welcome more, rather than Bringing the city back from the brink would require tremendous less outside help in kind to build security and has acknowledged organisational and management skills which the Mayor has proven that Mogadishu would not function in any way without the efforts of he possesses in spades. On assuming office, he identified several pri- 10,000 African Union troops who in August forced the terror group, ority tasks: paying his workers; improving security; clearing twenty the al Shabaab, to leave the city. years worth of debris from the streets; and providing lighting so Mayor Nur’s efforts have not gone unnoticed and in January he businesses could flourish. was named the 2011 Hiiraan Online’s “Person of the Year.” The an- With an initial budget of $50,000, which has since risen to 15% nual award recognizes Somali citizens who have contributed posi- of the approximately $2 million generated at the city’s port, he has tively to the well-being of the Somali people. g

out of Mogadishu, Police Commissioner, Brigadier General Sharif Sheekhura Maye, says that “it is important to prioritise the ex- The thin blue line pansion of police activities beyond Benadir region in order sustain the security situation created by the withdrawal of the al Shabaab terrorist group”. However, the success has come at significant cost. In 2011, according to Mr. Fiqi, the NSA lost “18 gallant officers and men; some at the front and others through explosives; but this has to be seen in comparison with lives saved, thank God.” The police also face serious challenges especially with regard to pay. In December, officers’ received their salaries for the months of March to May 2010, almost two years in arrears. This makes Mogadishu perhaps the only capital city in the world with s AMISOM and the Somali National agency undertook 1200 operations resulting what is essentially a volunteer police force. Army have continued to consolidate in the arrest of close to 1000 suspected al The cash-strapped Transitional Federal Gov- Athe government’s hold on Mogadi- Shabaab operatives. ernment is wholly reliant on donors within shu, the burden of ensuring security for the With the continuing training and mentor- the international community to provide the city’s residents has been increasingly borne ing support of the AMISOM Police Com- resources for the payment of police salaries by the Somali Police Force and the National ponent (AUPOL), the Somali Police, whose and in September, Prime Minister Dr. Abdi- Security Agency (NSA). The two entities, officers today number approximately 5000, weli Mohamed Ali appealed to the world for which recently celebrated their 68th and have established posts in all 16 of Mogadi- further help in this regard. 40th anniversary respectively, have been at shu’s districts. According to AUPOL Police Commis- the forefront of not just preventing terror- The huge improvement in security in sioner, Dr. Charles Makono, security in the ist attacks by the al Shabaab extremists, but the capital, in spite of the campaign of ter- long term can only be assured if sufficient also battling crime and managing the capi- ror announced by the extremists, is testa- training and mentoring programs as well tal’s chaotic traffic. ment to the effectiveness of these efforts. as resources are given to the Somali police Working together, and with the coopera- Now, for the first time in years, the people officers. “I visited two police stations and tion of city residents, they have registered of Mogadishu can go about their business they have no resources. How do you per- major successes in disrupting terror plots. with a measure of security and also enjoy a form with nothing? This where I think the According to the Director General of the spot of leisure on the city’s beaches. And, as international community should provide as- NSA, Ahmed Moallim Fiqi, in 2011, the AMISOM is reinforced and enabled to move sistance.” g

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 29 The year in politics

was a momentous year piled. This enabled the regular payment of cabinet also voted to give itself a one-year in Somali politics. salaries to soldiers, leading improving morale extension, arguing that an election would 2011Changes in govern- at a time when the government was about to undermine the significant military gains be- ment, a row then agreement over ending the launch its long awaited nationwide offensive ing made against the al Shabaab in Mogadi- transition, a victory over the al Shabaab, a against the al Shabaab terror group. shu and elsewhere. catastrophic famine, high profile visitors and However, dark clouds were gathering on In June, Ugandan President Yoweri Mu- a military incursion by neighbouring Kenya the political horizon. Under an agreement seveni and Dr. Mahiga mediated an agree- all conspired to keep the country in the in- negotiated with its international partners, ment in Kampala between the two Sharifs. ternational media spotlight. the TFG mandate was set to expire on Au- Signed on June 9, the Kampala Accord At the beginning of the year, the govern- gust 20, by which time the government extended the TFG tenure by one year in ment of Prime Minister Mohammed Abdul- should have held elections and introduced a exchange for the formation of a new gov- lahi “Farmajo” had only been in power for new constitution. However, with little prog- ernment within a period of thirty days. two months. It would continue to govern till ress made in these areas, it was clear that The Accord also called for the adoption of mid-year. Shortly after his appointment, the the TFG wouldn’t deliver on its transitional a Roadmap with “benchmarks, timelines, PM had appointed a new and much reduced tasks before the deadline. Differing views and compliance mechanisms” to ensure the technocratic Cabinet which a report issued within the international community over completion of the transitional tasks -includ- in February by the International Crisis how to resolve the issue were set aside after ing the promulgation of a new constitution Group described as “the boldest reform the the Transitional Federal Parliament, dis- and elections- by August 2012. The provi- [Transitional Federal Government] has yet regarding ongoing consultations, voted on sion requiring the resignation of Prime Min- undertaken…. [T]his cabinet does appear to February 3 to unilaterally extend its tenure ister Mohamed sparked an unprecedented be the first tentative step toward rewarding by three years. This move drew withering wave of protests in various cities across the merit, rather than political expediency.” criticism from international partners and country. Demonstrations were reported in Under Farmajo, the government produced precipitated a crisis within the TFG. Two Cairo, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Sydney, Lon- a national budget - the first in two decades. months later, with the Speaker insisting don, Rome, Stockholm, Minneapolis and The central bank was also re-opened and a that an election for president would be held Toronto. register containing the names and biometric before August and even appointing a com- Initially, the PM refused to step down, in- data of members of the security forces committee of Parliament to organise it, the TFG sisting that the Kampala Accord ought to be

30 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW presented to Parliament for debate. However, arrangements as well security sector gover- fence Forces crossed the common border in On June 19, 2011, he resigned in “the interest nance, held its ninth session in Mogadishu- pursuit of the al Shabaab. Ethiopian troops of the Somali people and the current situa- the first time it was meeting inside Somalia were also reported to have crossed the bor- tion in Somalia”. Dr. Abdiweli Mohamed since it was established by the 2008 Djibouti der though this was denied by their officials. Ali, his former Minister of Planning and Agreement. Following some initial confusion as to the International Cooperation, was appointed in In September, the TFG with the help of TFG’s position on the Kenyan move it be- his place. A new cabinet was also appointed. the international community organised a came clear that it was done at their invita- The next four weeks were dominated by conference in Mogadishu, attended by poli- tion. The Kenyan blitzkrieg soon took Ras news of the worsening humanitarian crisis ticians from across Somalia including the Kamboni and Buur Gabo but after was in Somalia with many people fleeing the al regions of Puntland and Galmudug, at which slowed down by seasonal rains. Following Shabaab controlled areas in the south where a Roadmap as specified in the Kampala Ac- an IGAD summit in Addis Ababa in No- a famine was taking hold. Many thousands cord was adopted. The four pillars of the vember, the AU Peace and Security Council trekked hundreds of kilometres to refugee roadmap were security, a constitution, good invited Kenya to rehat its troops in south So- camps in Mogadishu, and across the bor- governance as well as outreach and recon- malia as AMISOM, a request which Kenya

der in Kenya and Ethiopia. On July 20, the ciliation. acceded to and now awaits the approval of UN declared a famine in three regions of Following its adoption, the October meet- the UN Security Council. In November too, Somalia, including the capital. As the world ing of the Joint Security Committee for the the UK government announced that it would geared up to respond to the crisis, momen- first time included representatives from host an international conference on Somalia tous changes were about to take place in the regional stakeholders, Puntland, Galmu- in February 2012, further raising the profile military situation in the capital and beyond. dug and Ahlu Sunna Waljamaa. Further, a of the situation. On August 6, the al Shabaab, succumbing to National Security and Stabilization Plan The year ended pretty much as it had be- months of pressure from AMISOM and the 2011-2014 has been drafted and finalized gun, with a cloud hanging over the fate of Somali National Army, withdrew from most with their input. The plan was debated and one of the principal political actors. This of their bases in the city. approved by Prime Minister Ali’s Council time, in a reversal of fortunes, it was the The terrorists’ retreat opened the way for of Ministers at an emergency meeting in Oc- speaker fighting for his position as over 280 equally momentous moves on the political tober and has been submitted to Parliament, parliamentarians met and voted him out of front. Within two weeks of their departure, for discussion and adoption. In addition a office. Once again the international commu- the Joint Security Committee, which brings committee of experts to oversee the draft- nity, keen to protect the gains of the last year, together the representatives of the TFG, ing and promulgation of a new constitution is being drawn into the fight. As we went to AMISOM and the international community is now in place. press, a new Speaker had been voted in even including the UN, the Inter-Governmental While all this was happening, and fol- though Sharif Hassan had refused to recog- Authority on Development, the Arab League lowing a series of kidnappings of tourists nize the vote to remove him. It remains to be and the European Union to oversee security and aid workers in Kenya, the Kenya De- seen how this latest row will be resolved. g

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 31 istrative reforms instituted in recent years by previous administrations have begun to address the corruption and mismanage- ment that have for a long time held us back and eroded our credibility with our international partners. We have tapped into our vast diaspora to bring home the skills and expertise necessary to achieve this. As a result, for the first time in two decades, the government last year developed a national budget to govern expenditure, reopened the central bank and streamlined audit and accountability systems. These efforts are starting to pay off. Rev- enues from the seaport have doubled and those from the Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu quadrupled. The funds are being reinvested in provision of services to the people as our current capability allows. For example, 15 per cent of the Rebuilding the Nation revenue collected from the seaport has been set aside for the rehabilitation of the city. For By Abdiweli Mohamed Ali the first time in twenty years Mogadishu is being cleared of rubble; roads are being n ancient Somali proverb promises with a degree of optimism. This, of course, repaired and streets lit; markets and hospi- that if people come together, they does not mean we should forget what went tals are being refurbished and schools are Acan even mend a crack in the sky. before, but rather, that we take responsibility reopening. A register containing the names Truer words could not be said of the situa- for what has gone wrong, learn the lessons and biometric data of all members of the se- tion in Somalia. Today, in the midst of a dev- and resolve to do better. curity forces has been compiled. astating famine and internecine conflict, we And Somalia has shown that it can do bet- Much more however, remains to be done are witnessing the humble beginnings of a ter. Even as we acknowledge our liability for if we are to regain the trust of our people drive by the Somali people to take their des- past failures, we can draw inspiration from and of the international community. Even as tiny into their own hands and to shape their what has gone right. Take the peace process, we ask for people and governments around future for example. The conference in Mogadishu the world to help us cope with the effects of Four months ago, politicians from across was the culmination of Somali-led recon- the famine and to support the peace process, the diverse Somali spectrum, including the ciliation initiatives, dating back to the Arta we cannot afford to lose sight of the need to central government and regional administra- Declaration of May 2000. This established demonstrate that we are credible and reliable tions, came together in the capital, Mogadi- the Transitional National Government - the partners, for none of what I have listed would shu, to chart a new course for the country. At first since 1991 to secure a measure of in- have been possible without international the three day meeting, they adopted a Road- ternational recognition, enabling Somalia to help. I therefore call on all Somalis, wher- map to pave the way for the restoration of reoccupy its seat at the UN and on regional ever they may be, to rededicate themselves permanent, representative and accountable bodies. Over the course of over a decade, to this effort. I am personally committed to government. They also publicly committed the transition process has expanded to in- ensuring that the government meets its obli- themselves to working together to the imple- clude many who had initially opposed it. In gations as detailed in the Roadmap, to con- mentation of key priority tasks including the 2003, the Transitional Federal Government tinuing the reforms and to entrenching the adoption of new constitution by August this was formed. Other factions have since been values of openness and accountability. year. incorporated into the TFG, including the Eleanor Roosevelt once said that the future By any measure, given past experience, moderate wing of the Islamic Courts Union belongs to those who believe in the beauty this is an ambitious undertaking and we are in 2008 under the Djibouti Agreement, and of their dreams. Somalia stands on the cusp. under no illusions about the scepticism which a moderate Sufi group, the Ahlu Sunna Wal Our actions are what will determine whether it will attract among both the Somali people Jamaa, two years later. It is therefore clear we will move beyond the nightmare of the and the international community. Two de- that while the process has not always been past. If we unite and commit to doing better, cades of seemingly unending humanitarian smooth, it has nonetheless proven to be in- I am certain that the world will continue to crises, and inept and kleptocratic leadership clusive, locally driven and something that all support us and, together, we can mend the have driven many to despair. However we Somalis can rightly take pride in. crack in our common future. g now have an opportunity to look forward In a similar vein, economic and admin- The author is the Prime Minister of Somalia

32 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW A window of opportunity By Dr. Augustine Mahiga

ooking back, 2011 has proved to be during September’s Consultative Meeting, Mogadishu on 9 December to see the changes a watershed year for Somalia. Over the first high level meeting to be held in for himself – the first time a UN Secretary Lthe past 12 months, I believe we have Mogadishu for four years, which opened at General has been there for eighteen years and seen a window of opportunity open that the Parliament building. This landmark event my office has relocated from Nairobi. would have been unthinkable a year ago. was followed by further consultative meet- There are sure to be many challenges in the However we must remember that for all ings in Mogadishu with women, civil society year ahead - the extremists will continue their too many Somalis, this has been a year of and human rights groups. Most recently, the terrorist attacks and will continue to target unimaginable suffering. The drought and first national constitutional conference was Somali civilians. There will be further po- subsequent famine has left thousands dead held in Garowe in Puntland State, bringing litical wrangling as the end of the transition and forced many more to flee their homes in together the signatories of the Roadmap and nears and some goals in the Roadmap will not search of food and water. The humanitarian civil society to discuss the structure of Par- be met on time. However we need to ensure organisations and Somali authorities have liament and the Constitution. On the political that we make steady progress on all fronts. In made important progress towards improving track, many obstacles remain but the progress the next two months there will be a meeting the situation in some areas, but the interna- this year has been substantive. of the International Contact Group as well as tional community needs to continue its ef- There have also been important gains on a major Conference in London which will fo- forts to ensure we see an end to the famine the security front. The year started with the cus international attention on concrete action as soon as possible. forces of AMISOM and the TFG controlling to address a range of important issues. On the political front, we have made re- a limited number of districts in Mogadishu. We must continue to ensure that the pro- markable gains despite major challenges. The But years of hard fought efforts against the cess is transparent, focused, consultative impasse between the President and Speaker insurgents eventually paid off, and in August, and led by the Somali people themselves. was broken by the Kampala Accord, in the the al Shabaab withdrew from the capital There is no room for spoilers - action will be presence of President Yoweri Museveni and city. Here I must pay tribute in particular to taken against those that stand in the way for myself. It resulted in a one year extension to the soldiers from Burundi and Uganda who their own political gain and obstructionism the transitional period and set the stage for the have made the ultimate sacrifice for the So- will not be tolerated. I count on all Somalis, adoption of the Roadmap charting the way mali people. My own travels to Mogadishu and the friends of Somalia, to ensure that to- ahead. The Roadmap on Ending the Transi- have confirmed that, for some, life is re- gether, we keep moving towards peace and tion clearly sets out the priority tasks and turning to normal – I have seen children in stability. g deadlines to be met in the next year in the key school uniforms, men sitting in the sun drink- areas of security, constitution and elections, ing tea and the women going to market. The The author is the Special Representative outreach and governance. It was endorsed UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon visited of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 33 London conference on Somalia By Matt Baugh

s we look back on 2011, it’s hard not to be shocked by what has hap- Apened in Somalia. For, despite our collective efforts, Somalia remains mired in conflict and in a humanitarian disaster of immense proportions: tens of thousands have needlessly died this year in the 21st century’s first famine; more than a quarter of the country’s population is now displaced, many of whom now find themselves in Ke- nya, Ethiopia or Yemen, as well as further afield. As Somalia continues to suffer, entire generations are growing up knowing little else but violence and conflict. Generations of children are not going to school; few have access to the basic services that many of us take for granted. At the same time, Somalia Somali men, women and children. and that a more inclusive political process is continues to be a base for terrorists and pi- This is why during 2011 the UK has con- vital to Somalia’s future peace and stabil- rates that threaten the region and the wider tinued to increase its focus on Somalia. The ity. That is why we welcomed the Roadmap international community. British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, agreed in Mogadishu in September and have But there is also cause for optimism - in announced in May that the UK would re- called on all the signatories to implement its particular: AMISOM’s brave efforts in Mog- open an Embassy in Mogadishu when local key provisions. adishu, alongside TFG forces, are bringing conditions allow. In August, the UK’s In- For these reasons, the British Prime Min- real benefits to the people of that benighted ternational Development Secretary, Andrew ister, David Cameron, has decided to act by city. Somaliland continues to develop as a Mitchell, became the first British Minister calling together leaders of key partner coun- relatively stable entity, and Puntland is plan- to visit Mogadishu in 18 years. There, he tries and organisations, both in Africa and ning elections in 2013. Meanwhile the tran- witnessed for himself the work being done beyond, to a conference in London on 23 sitional period under Somalia’s peace pro- to alleviate the suffering that is now affect- February, to help galvanise a common ap- cess should come to an end in August 2012. ing a quarter of Somali’s population. Both proach to address the suffering of the Somali We need to tackle the causes of instability Mr Mitchell and Minister for Africa, Henry people and the problems and challenges that in Somalia. The famine has brought a re- Bellingham, visited Hargeisa during the affect us all. As we look forward into 2012, newed international focus to Somalia, with course of the year, and UK officials have we hope this will be the catalyst for a new new donors and an increased recognition visited several different areas of Somalia in approach to Somalia and strengthen the ef- that we need to do more. AMISOM’s efforts the course of their work during 2011. forts to bring lasting peace and stability for to secure Mogadishu have shown what is Delivering security for Somalia’s popula- the Somali people. Together, we hope we possible. Al Shabaab is clearly under pres- tion is essential to improving the prospects can make 2012 an opportunity to support a sure, as Kenya and Ethiopia take the initia- for peace. We therefore reiterate our strong brighter future for Somalia. g tive. We need an international approach fo- support for the AMISOM mission. But we cused on actions which support and build on also recognise that there cannot be a purely The author is the the progress being made on the ground for military solution to the problems in Somalia, UK’s Senior Representative to Somalia

34 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW o country was as badly affected as Somalia by the food crisis that hit Nthe Horn of Africa in mid-2011. In July, the UN declared a famine in 3 regions of Somalia, including the capital, where thousands were seek help. Within two months, the famine had engulfed a further 3 regions and it was estimated that up to 30,000 had already died. Over three-quarters of a million were said to be in imminent risk of starvation. The numbers coming out of Somalia paint- ed a terrible picture of a population caught in a perfect storm of calamities: a two-decade long brutal conflict which has seen the country play host to one of the largest displaced populations in the world ; the worst drought in a generation has precipitated a sharp de- cline in food production; rising food prices mean that even the little available is out of reach of the impoverished population; and funding shortfalls for relief agencies resulting from a faltering global economy. Somalia has two rain seasons. The long rains, known as Gu, start in March/April and last until June. The harvest is gathered from August at the tail end of a short dry spell, Xagaa. Deyr, the minor wet season, extends from October to November/December, with crops being harvested in February. The long dry season, Jiilaal, which starts in January, continues until the onset of the Gu. Though the 2010 Gu harvest was excep- tional, the almost complete failure of the short rains later in the year meant that Deyr cereal production, which would normally account for up to a third of total annual cereal production in southern Somalia, plummeted to the Hunger stalks lowest level since 1995. Therefore, despite the bumper Gu harvest, the total production for the year was actually less than average. Making matters worse, the 2011 Gu was late and poorly distributed. In some parts the Horn of Shabelle, it had not rained by early May. However, the escalation from drought into famine was wholly a result of the actions of unless they paid an exorbitant fee. As an ar- ing increases of 37 percent, according to the Al Qaeda-affiliated extremist group, al ticle in Spectator magazine acknowledged, the US Agency for International Develop- Shabaab. Farmers had been forced to grow “[insurgent] forces looted grain stores, taxed ment. Prices of local staples were showing cash crops to fund the insurgency, instead of food markets and menaced farmers until significant increases. Concern Worldwide, food crops to feed their families. Children, they gave up planting crops.” To this day, an international humanitarian agency work- youths and old men alike, were gang-pressed they continue to prevent aid agencies from ing in Somalia, said the cost of cereals had into insurgent ranks, diminishing the pool of feeding the hungry and families from leav- increased by up to 135 percent over the year labour available to tend to farms. Just weeks ing the areas under their control to seek help. before. The Famine Early Warning System before the UN announced the famine in In six months, the average daily cost of Network estimated that red sorghum prices Lower Shabelle, the militants were reported food for Somali families went up by up to had risen by up to 240 percent over the same to be stopping farmers watering their fields 27 percent, with areas in the south report- period. In general, maize prices were around

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 35 of 15 per cent. The crisis was also creating large numbers of internally displaced persons (IDPs). In the first six months of the year alone, the UN estimated that the drought had displaced 55,000. These were most often the poorest of the poor and it was no coincidence, therefore, that they suffered disproportionately. While a third of the general population was in crisis in June, the ratio among IDPs was twice that. The situation drove more people to either flee to Mogadishu or leave the country all together, many of them having to walk for up to a month to reach refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia. At the Daadab refugee camp in Kenya, the largest in the world, about 1,300 Somalis were arriving every day, nearly two-thirds of them children. their peak levels of mid-2008 during the malnourished children, three-quarters of Humanitarian relief efforts both within global food price crisis, while those of red whom were resident in the extremist-con- Somalia and in the refugee camps in the sorghum had surpassed them. trolled southern regions. In some of these neighbouring states initially suffered from The combination of extremely high food areas, 1 in 3 children were malnourished, an inadequate international response. Ac- prices and plummeting livestock prices sub- more than double the emergency threshold cording to a January 2012 report by Oxfam stantially eroded the purchasing power of Somalia’s pastoral communities. Pastoralists depend on livestock for all their basic needs and animal sales are often used to buy grain. However, in Juba region for example, between May 2010 and May 2011, the value of one cow collapsed from 430 kg to 161 kg of maize. A statement issued by Oxfam at the beginning of July concluded that “livelihoods ha[d] already been decimated, but there [was] also a real risk of large-scale loss of life.” The effects were devastating. According to the UN, the poor performance of the rains led to the worst annual crop production in 17 years and excess animal mortality. Food prices more than tripled, seriously impacting the purchasing power of poor and vulnerable households. In June, the Somalia Food Se- curity and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU) estimated that 2.85 million - a third of the population- were in humanitarian crisis and in need of urgent assistance. “We are no longer on the verge of a humanitarian disaster; we are in the middle of it now,” Isaq Ahmed, the chairman of the Mubarak Relief and De- velopment Organization (MURDO), a local NGO working in the south of the country, told the Integrated Regional Information Network on 28 June. “It is happening and no one is helping.” By then, according to United Nations Of- fice for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Somalia had an estimated 241,000

36 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW and Save the Children titled A Dangerous Delay, donors wanted proof of a humanitarian catastrophe before acting to prevent one. In December 2010, the U.N. had launched the 2011 Consolidated Appeal (CAP) for So- malia, asking for nearly $530 million to help it cater for approximately 2 million people. The report says that this seriously underesti- mated the number of people in need of emergency aid partly because the timeline of UN appeals is not aligned with the seasons in the Horn of Africa. Less than a year later, it had to be doubled. In fact, as early as August 2010, indicators of an impending crisis were already plain. According to UN OCHA, by late 2010, malnutrition rates were already significantly above the emergency threshold and trigger for humanitarian response. Yet this did not translate into a concerted high, had come down by up to 20 percent out of Mogadishu and created a zone of rela- effort to prevent the looming catastrophe. compared to previous months. tive safety where aid could be delivered to Indeed, funding for the Somalia CAP in the Ari Gaitanis, a spokesperson for the UN the hungry. However, the situation in the first six months of 2011 was lower than each Office for the Coordination of Humanitar- south continues to be dire. The rains may of the preceding three years. Even though ian Affairs, based in Mogadishu, told the have returned to the south but continuing the UN’s December 2010 CAP represented AMISOM Review in December that the hu- conflict and displacement, as well as the un- an 11 percent reduction from the mid-year manitarian community had by then received conscionable ban on activities of aid agen- funding request, only half of the money had $800 million, or 80 per cent of the $1 billion cies re-instituted by the al Shabaab, mean been received by June 2011. The funding it had asked for in 2011. “That made it one that populations there are unlikely to see any shortage bit hard. “We began having to cut of the best funded humanitarian appeals the significant improvements soon. The report ration sizes from February, to try and eke out UN in 2011,” he said. Within three months, by Oxfam and Save the Children declares what food we did have coming through the the number of people in Somalia receiving that it is impossible to end mass death by system,” World Food Programme spokes- food each month more than tripled to 2.6 starvation without reducing the violence that man, Peter Smerdon told the BBC. “In May, million and the famine was rolled back in is one of its principal causes. In the longer we had only about 30% of the food that we three of the six affected regions. In Novem- term, the lasting solution to the present crisis need to feed the one million people that we ber, the UN cut its estimate of those immi- and amelioration of future catastrophes lies were expecting to feed this time of the year. nently at risk of starvation by two-thirds to in the stabilisation of Somalia and the elimi- In fact we’re feeding 66% of the one million 250,000. nation of the extremist menace. This will people we should be feeding but the amount Much of this would have been impossible demand a renewed effort to both extend the of food being given out is only 33% of what without the efforts of the AU Mission in So- gains achieved by AMISOM in Mogadishu we should be giving out.” malia, which in August drove the al Shabaab to the rest of the country. g It was the declaration of famine, and the global media attention that followed, that finally begun to turn things around. At Mogadishu’s Aden Abdulleh International Airport, aid flights started arriving by the dozen. By August, the average number of flights per month had almost doubled compared to the 247 at the beginning of the year. On a single day, at the height of the crisis, 43 flights brought in tons of food and medicines from across the world. The rapid and unprecedented generosity of the international community had a huge impact. In September, the Somali Prime Minister, Abdiweli Ali, reported to the UN Security Council that cereal prices in the Banadir region, though still unacceptably

AMISOM REVIEW - January 2012 37 he humanitarian situation in Somalia – and the worst in Somalia since the famine continues to be dire despite the huge some 20 years ago. Tinternational response to the famine. AMISOM Review spoke with Ari Gaitanis, a Q. What has been the reason behind the spokesperson for the UN Office for the Co- progress in the humanitarian situation? ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, based in Mogadishu, for an update on the situation. Gaitanis: A big reason for the progress has been the rapid support from donors – Q. What is the general humanitarian situa- frankly, the response to the famine was un- tion in Somalia at the moment? precedented. The humanitarian community sought around $1 billion for aid in 2011, and, Gaitanis: There’s no doubt that the human- so far, it’s received $800 million, or 80 per itarian community has made some pretty ma- cent of what was needed. That made it one jor strides in 2011. For starters, we were able of the best funded humanitarian appeals for to push back the famine that was declared in the UN in 2011. What that translated into on parts of Somalia in July. The number of peo- the ground was that within three months, the ple facing imminent starvation was reduced number of people in Somalia receiving food from 750,000 in early September to 250,000 each month more than tripled to 2.6 million. by November, but the progress is quite precar- And, of course, further proof that the scale- ious. There are still four million Somalis who up in humanitarian assistance is working are in urgent need of humanitarian aid, with came in mid-November when three of the three-quarters of them in southern Somalia. six areas of Somalia – in the Bay, Bakool and They need basic life-saving necessities, such Lower Shabelle regions – were brought out as food, shelter and health care. Malnutrition of famine to the pre-famine phase. from famine? and mortality rates in many parts of the country’s south are still the highest in the world Q. So, there are still three areas suffering Gaitanis: Yes, and that means we can’t rest up just yet, far from it actually. The fact is that Somalia remains the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. There’s still famine in the Middle Shabelle region, the Afgooye corridor’s internally displaced persons’ (IDP) settlements and amidst the Mogadishu IDP community.And just because an area comes out of famine doesn’t mean that it doesn’t need urgent humanitarian aid. Overall, any improvements in the situation can only be sustained if the current level of assistance continues – especially as the crisis is expect-

38 January 2012 - AMISOM REVIEW Fighting the famine ed to last well into 2012, and can actually be- a major displacement of people from the for the coming year’s challenges? come worse before it gets better. For example, worst-hit areas. Many of them have been the recently-ended Deyr rains brought water- displaced within Somalia, but many have Gaitanis: It’s going to take a lot of focus, borne disease and made access to people in also gone into neighbouring countries – al- dedication and resources to build on the need that much more difficult. Also, the esca- most 300,000 Somalis fled hunger and war progress made in 2011, and that’s one rea- lation in fighting and the latest ban on 16 UN in their country in 2011 alone. Currently son why the humanitarian community is ap- humanitarian agencies and non-governmen- there are around 520,000 Somali refugees in pealing – through the Consolidated Appeal tal organizations working in southern regions Kenya, almost two-fifths of them arrived in Process for Somalia 2012 – for $1.5 billion. have further complicated relief efforts. that country in 2011. They’ve mostly settling Sure, it sounds like a lot and it is a lot, but in the world’s largest refugee camp, Dadaab, these funds are vital. They’re not only neces- Q. What about the humanitarian impact in northern Kenya, and their humanitarian sary to save lives in the short-term, they’re outside of Somalia? needs are also great. also needed to help put in place programmes to reduce dependence on humanitarian aid, Gaitanis: That’s also another factor in Q. You mentioned 2012. What is the hu- so that Somali households can better cope the bigger picture. The crisis has led to manitarian community doing to prepare with future drought and other shocks. g

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