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7905th Security Council Meeting: Situation in Somalia
Newly Elected President Urges Council to Help His Country Fend Off Looming Famine
Unanimously adopting resolution 2346 (2017) today, the Security Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) until 16 June.
By other terms of the resolution, the 15-member Council noted that a review of the United Nations presence in the East African country had been deferred until the end of the electoral process. Further by the text, the Council recalled all its previous resolutions and statements of its President concerning the situation in Somalia, in particular resolution 2275 (2016), by which it had requested the Secretary-General to conduct the review.
Briefing members after the adoption, Michael Keating, Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), said a drought-induced humanitarian crisis was engulfing Somalia with an imminent risk of famine. More than 6 million Somalis were in need of humanitarian assistance.
The Famine Prevention Operational Plan sought $825 million to reach 5.5 million people by June, he said, and further resources were needed to help affected people before it was too late. “Had the recent parliamentary and presidential elections not delivered a result accepted as legitimate, drought response efforts would be much more difficult.”
Against that backdrop, the recent elections had created a sense of hope, he said, noting that the new Parliament was more diverse, younger and female than ever. “Somalis have made history and set a great example to countries emerging from conflict,” he said. It was time to use that goodwill to build a functional and inclusive federal State to tackle the socioeconomic, structural and political issues that made millions of Somalis vulnerable to drought and insecurity.
Unless Somalia attracted serious investment and generated domestic revenues, State-building would remain an aspiration, he cautioned. He urged greater efforts to build institutional capacity, improve financial management, transparency and accountability, and eliminate terrorism.
President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed Farmajo of Somalia, participating via teleconference, said the recent elections, despite enormous scepticism, had ended peacefully and democratically, and for the first time in history, women now held 30 per cent of the seats in Parliament.
At the same time, he said, more than half the population faced food shortages and 15 per cent of Somalis were facing famine. Having recently declared the drought a national disaster, he urged institutions to act immediately and work with the humanitarian community. “Your support and generosity will be noted, not only by the Somali people, but by history,” he declared. Redoubled efforts were needed to build resilience and disaster management.
On the security front, he said Al-Shabaab had been weakened, thanks to the sacrifice made by Somali and African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) troops. The only way to protect Somalia was to fully rebuild its army and security forces. “This is our goal and we will achieve it with your support,” he asserted.
Briefing via video-link, Francisco Caetano José Madeira, Special Representative and Head of the African Union Mission in Somalia, agreed the security situation had greatly improved thanks to efforts by the Mission and the national forces. The Somali Government was working hard to improve its efficiency, while regional Governments had continuously built capacity to respond to people’s needs.
While the Somali economy had come back to life and 80 per cent of the territory had been recovered from Al-Shabaab, he said more must be done to ensure the security of liberated communities. Somali soldiers must be screened, equipped, paid and given command over how to effectively face the enemy, he said. As AMISOM would draw down in 2018, building the capacity of national forces was crucial.
During the discussion, Ethiopia’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs pointed to a number of Somalia’s important achievements, including the elections and progress in weakening Al-Shabaab. “What we see in Somalia today is more than a light at the end of the tunnel,” she emphasized. The United Nations and the international community must find ways of ensuring predictable, dependable funding for AMISOM so it could “finish the job”. Ethiopia, for its own part, was supporting the United Nations response by allowing the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to purchase supplies from its local markets, and facilitating easy-access corridors for humanitarian supplies entering Somalia.
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom, which holds the Council Presidency for March, said the crisis in Somalia had undermined gains made in the political and security fields. “This is a critical time for the security in Somalia and we must work together,” he declared. Stressing the importance of a political agreement between the federal Government and the states, supported by Parliament and civil society, he expressed hope to also make progress at the London Somalia Conference in May.
In similar vein, Japan’s representative said his Government had decided to extend $26 million in emergency humanitarian assistance, with $8.5 million directed to Somalia. Those funds were in addition to the $22 million in assistance that Japan had announced in January
A number of delegates, while noting that recent developments had raised hopes among Somali citizens, underscored the need to abide by the road map for the next elections. Sweden’s representative emphasized that preparations for the 2020 polls must begin at the earliest possible moment and that a clear path towards “one person, one vote” must be developed.
Also underlined by speakers was the threat posed by Al-Shabaab, with Egypt’s representative saying “terrorism still represents a major threat”, including for neighbouring countries. Stronger regional and international efforts were critical to defeating the group, he stressed.
At the outset, several delegates condemned the 22 March terrorist attack in London, expressing their condolences to the bereaved. Representatives also expressed concern about attacks by Al-Shabaab in which dozens of Somalis had been killed.
Also speaking today were representatives of Ukraine, Senegal, Italy, Kazakhstan, China, Uruguay, United States, Bolivia, Russian Federation and France.
The meeting began at 10:10 a.m. and ended at 12:25 p.m.
