SOMALILAND IS MOVING FROM POSITION TO INTEREST, By Hamdi Abdi

- Somaliland has been a self-declared state for more than two decades. In the course of this period, she had three governments and the current government after the topple of Siyad,s government in 1990. After when Somaliland was declared independence in 18th may 1991, Somali landers were buoyed by the thought that their country was entering a new and exciting era of rapid economic development and political maturity and prosperity.

Today, some two decades later the mood is one of gloom and despair, mis -management of scarce resource, Despotism and a political order that may be threatened if advantaged and disadvantaged group within a Political system, have not acquired a commitment to and internalized constitutional rules of the game, But simply you look on these rules as tactical weapons for seeking to preserve what they have, or gaining What they do not have respectively.

Moreover, Somaliland is worse off than before three decades ago and the harvest of breakaway has been worsening poverty, civil wars, greater dependence on foreign aid, tahrib and youth unemployment Parallel to this, the oft-repeated exhortion by politicians to youth that they are the leaders of tomorrow and the custodians of national development rings hollow. When it is considered the dismal state in which Somaliland youth had been living for the last two decades.

Despite the progress to empower youth for the last two decades was shadowed by tribal mathematical power sharing and their prospect remain depressing. Obviously, meaningful development promotes self –reliant, independent because it has to be largely Geared towards satisfying the basic and actual needs of the people. Therefore, unless you develop economically, you cannot be independent.

So, how Somaliland can be independent state if not developed economicall­y? The answer is  you cannot be independent unless you develop..

HOW SILANYO,S Government CAN BEST RESPOND TO THE ABOVE CHALLENGES MET BY SOMALILAND,S THREE SUCCESSIVE GOVERMENTS Before 2010­?

Development is treated both as (social process which can be influenced in large measures by human design) and as *change and growth*. Development involves *improvement in material and social welfare* this improvement is measured by the degree to which material and social wellbeing is *widely diffused* among the population.

By the availability of employment opportunities ,access to education, provision of health ,housing, clean water and others such as consumption of calories and proteins. In addition, S.P.Huntington has worked out a model to account for political instability in developing areas.

He attributes political instability to absence of viable political institutions which can domesticate power. The attributes of developed political systems, namely ,complexity, coherence, autonomy, chronological and generational ages are lacking.

By his criteria, political system may be modernized, modernization measured in term of material and social development, without being developed if there are no generally acceptable political formulae for resolving conflicts short of physical use of force..

Apart from that, the answer lies in the selection of form of government, institutional reform, solving political conflicts among Somalis , youth empowerment and putting any effort to move the state from aid-dependency to self-reliant and independent.

In the pursuit of these objectives, the president of Somaliland had taken good steps that may shift the state from position to interest. The president restructured the government and nominated a chief of cabinet which is obviously the head of cabinet ministers.

So, it is possible that power was transferred from president to the chief of cabinet and the president remains in ceremonial president.

Similarly, the previous chief of cabinet was nominated to another ministerial post when political deal conference is likely to take place in Mogadishu on 3rd September 2011 and another chief of cabinet that is unknown by media and people was nominated and signed the deal on behalf of Somaliland..

Moreover, all Somali leaders signed a political deal for a new government backed by U.N in Mogadishu. Hence the new political deal focuses on security, national reconciliation, draft charter, governance, and institutional reform and will be effective in 2012.

On the other hand, minsters will also transfer power to the youth and they will be ceremonial minsters. For instance, the formation of steering committee of civil aviation’s of somaliland ,putland and somalia that will administer Somalia, s air transport.

This will affect the power of the of the minsters of the three somalis, because the steering committee will have ministerial power and the minsters will be ceremonial minsters. Therefore, the power hand over from retired and old aged to youth proves that Somalis are on the development road!

The vision of peace and development lies in national reconciliation and solution for political conflicts among Somalis and just and dialogue

By Hamdi Abdi Jama

(EX-POSTGRADUATE STUDENT OF PEACE AND CONFLICT STUDIES

-Institute Of Peace and Conflict Studies

University Of Hargeisa).

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Posted by Adan Abdi (Hargeisa).