Mogadishu (WDN) — Somalia is approaching a political crossroads with no broadly accepted agreement on the rules of the next election and widening disputes over who has the authority to determine them. What began as a disagreement over electoral arrangements now risks becoming a wider contest over political legitimacy, federal authority and the future direction...
Mogadishu (WDN) — Somalia’s government is moving to end the long-standing practice of allowing members of parliament to serve simultaneously as ministers—a move critics say exposes President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s growing disregard for the country’s agreed constitutional framework. The change effectively overturns a provision of the 2012 Provisional Federal Constitution (PFCS), which established Somalia as...
ADDIS ABABA (WDN) — A summit in Egypt has triggered a new diplomatic dispute between Somalia and Ethiopia, with Addis Ababa sharply criticizing President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud over Somalia’s endorsement of a joint declaration alongside Egypt, Eritrea and Sudan. The October 4 meeting in New Alamein was intended to strengthen regional cooperation on security, the...
DOOLOW, GEDO (WDN) — Somalia’s political fragmentation is now reaching the district level. After prolonged disputes between Mogadishu and Puntland, Jubaland and South West State, a district administration in Gedo has now declared that it will follow Ethiopian security policies until a Somali government capable of exercising authority across the country emerges. The declaration came...
MOGADISHU (WDN) — Security checkpoints now reportedly surround the roads leading to former President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed’s residence, while opposition sources allege that cameras have been installed to monitor visitors—a striking escalation as Somalia remains deadlocked over the rules of its next election. The Federal Government has not publicly explained the reported security measures....
By Abdullahi A. Nor When Mustafe Omer came to power in August, 2018, he represented a break from the past. An activist and outspoken advocate for justice, accountability, and the rights of the Somali people, he was widely seen as the face of a new political era. Nearly eight years later, that promise has given...
DJIBOUTI (WDN) — Djibouti has reportedly emerged as the African country with the highest average take-home salary, according to data cited from LiveGDP, with workers said to receive an average of $2,836 per month after taxes and other payroll deductions. The figure places Djibouti at the top of the ranking for average net monthly wages...
MOGADISHU (WDN) — Somalia’s federal government is facing mounting fiscal pressure after President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud disclosed that customs-based domestic revenue has fallen by an estimated 40 percent, underscoring the vulnerability of the country’s finances to disruptions in regional maritime trade. The president attributed the decline to disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical...
President Rejects Any Comparison Between Israel and Türkiye — Yet Leaves the Door Open to Future Relations with Israel MOGADISHU (WDN) — President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s latest interview with Al Jazeera has exposed a striking tension in Somalia’s foreign-policy messaging: while he presents Türkiye as fundamentally different from Israel and rejects any suggestion that the...
Replacing 14 October Forces With Gorgor Raises Fears That a Political Dispute Could Become a New Security Crisis in Lower Shabelle MARKA (WDN) — A new security confrontation is taking shape in Marka, where the deployment of Somali National Army Gorgor forces has triggered growing tension and raised fears that a political dispute over the...