Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has reassured his African counterparts that his country is now ready to take charge of its security following sixteen years of African Union Peacekeeping mission there. The peace mission made up of troops from five African countries is meant to end on 31 December 2024.
President Hassan was speaking in a meeting at Entebbe Uganda, attended by the presidents of troop-contributing countries. It was convened to assess the progress of the peace mission keeping and enforcement mission, as well as the readiness of the Somali armed forces to fully take over the country’s security. They hailed the initiative by the Federal Government of Somalia to take full ownership and leadership of the country’s stabilization strategy, which marks renewed momentum by the government to restore state authority and start providing basic public goods and services in liberated areas.
A drawdown of African troops starts in two months’ time with the withdrawal of two thousand troops in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions. The process will continue until the end of 2024 when the last batch of the African Union Forces are expected to leave the country.
The heads of state of troop-contributing countries to Somalia called on the UN Security Council to lift the arms embargo against Somalia, to enable the country to take charge of its own security.
In a communique signed by five presidents from Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, Djibouti, and the foreign affairs minister of Ethiopia, it was observed that there should be a joint assessment and verification mechanism of the security situation and the readiness of the Somali Federal government to take over.
The African Union Mission for Somalia (AMISOM) was in April 2022 changed to the African Union Transition Mission in Somali (ATMIS) in preparation for the withdrawal of the Force, and gradual handover of security responsibilities to the National Force. ATIMS’ mandate included the implementation of the Somali transitional plan that entails procedures of the handover of security responsibilities by December 2024.
SOMALI ARMY TRAINING IN UGANDA
In the last few years, Somalia has recruited and trained thousands of Somalis into the National Army and Police. Uganda has been their training ground since the early 2000s with instructors from the Uganda Peoples’ Defense Forces (UPDF). The presidents were informed that over two thousand recruits were passed out in March 2023 at the UPDF’s training school in western Uganda, and another three thousand are to be commissioned in a month’s time to boost the Somali National Army.
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud visited Uganda a month ago to oversee the pass-out of Somali Army trainees. President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda informed his counterparts that once Africa agrees on a similar concept, the continent can be able to solve all its security problems.
The meeting recognized the achievements made by ATMIS so far, which included supporting the smooth political transition, saving lives, and supporting stabilization efforts in Somalia. Tribute was paid to the troops that died in the war against the Al-Shabaab terrorist group. President Sheikh Hassan Mohamud paid an emotional tribute to the troops and countries that have borne the brunt of fighting Al-Shabaab as a sign of Africa’s commitment to using African solutions to solve Africa’s problems.
DRAWDOWN RESOLUTIONS
The resolutions of the African Union Peace and Security Council, and the UN Security Council taken in 2022 included the gradual and sector-by-sector approach to the drawdown as the Somali government is still building its capacity and called for increased logistical support to Somali National Army in the process, as well as exploring alternative means to guarantee Somalia’s security beyond 2024.
The drawdown process will start with 2000 troops this June, and be followed by another three thousand. AMISOM/ATMIS has over fifteen thousand soldiers deployed in Somalia. The president advised that the withdrawal must be done considering the security situation on the ground.
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