Somalia

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somalia
Anthem: Soomaaliyeey Toosoow Somalia, Wake Up
Capital (and largest city)		Mogadishu 2°02′N 45°21′E
Official languages		Somali1, Arabic3
Government		Transitional Federal Government
-	President	Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed
-	Prime Minister	Ali Mohammed Ghedi
Independence		from the UK and Italy
-	Date	July 1 1960
Area
-	Total	637,661 km² (42nd) 246,201 sq mi
-	Water (%)	1.6
Population
-	2003 estimate	10,700,0002 (74th)
-	1987 census	7,114,431
GDP (PPP)		2006 estimate
-	Total	$5.023 billion (160th)
-	Per capita	$600 (not ranked)
Currency		Somali shilling (SOS)
Time zone		EAT (UTC+3)
-	Summer (DST)	not observed (UTC+3)
Internet TLD		.so (currently non-operational)
Calling code		+252
1	CIA Factbook
2	BBC News country profile
3	Transitional Federal Charter of the Somali Republic

Somalia, officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is located on the Horn of Africa in East Africa. he Somali state currently exists largely in a de jure capacity; Somalia has a weak but largely recognized central government authority that currently controls only the central region of Somalia, the Transitional Federal Government (TFG), which until recently controlled only Baidoa. De facto authority in the north of the country resides in the hands of the governments for the unrecognized entities of Somaliland, Maakhir, Galmudug, and Puntland, and in the south of the country and the Galgadud region no government exists at all, and various tribal militias battle for dominance. Violence has plagued Mogadishu, the capital, since warlords ousted former President Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

While many states acknowledge the authority of the TFG (Puntland, Galmudug, Maakhir) and maintain their declaration of autonomy within a federated Somalia, Somaliland maintains its declaration of independence and does not recognize the TFG as its governing authority.

Geography

Somalia is located on the east coast of Africa north of the Equator between the Gulf of Aden on the north and Indian Ocean on the east. Together with Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Djibouti it is often referred to as the Horn of Africa. It borders Djibouti on the northwest, Ethiopia on the west, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline in Africa.

Climate

Major climatic factors are a year-round hot climate, seasonal monsoon winds, and irregular rainfall with recurring droughts. Mean daily maximum temperatures range from 85–105°F (30°C to 40°C), except at higher elevations and along the east coast. Mean daily minimums usually vary from about 60–85°F (15°C to 30°C). The southwest monsoon, a sea breeze, makes the period from about May to October the mildest season at Mogadishu. The December-February period of the northeast monsoon is also relatively mild, although prevailing climatic conditions in Mogadishu are rarely pleasant. The "tangambili" periods that intervene between the two monsoons (October–November and March–May) are hot and humid.

Natural disasters

Somalia was one of the many countries affected by the tsunami which struck the Indian Ocean coast following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, destroying entire villages and killing an estimated 300 people.

In 2006, Somalia was deluged by torrential rains and flooding that struck the entire Horn of Africa affecting 350,000 people.

History

Somalia has been continuously inhabited by numerous and varied ethnic groups, some of Oromo or other Cushitic ancestry, but the majority were Somalis, for the last 2,500 years. From the 1st century numerous ports, like ancient Opone (now Hafun) and ancient Mosylon-Bandar Gori, were trading with Roman and Greek sailors. The northwestern part of current Somalia was part of the Kingdom of Aksum from about the third century to the seventh.

By the early medieval period (700 C.E.–1200 C.E.), Islam became firmly established, especially with the founding of Mogadishu in 900. The late medieval period (1201-1500) saw the rise of numerous Somali city-states and kingdoms. In northwestern Somalia, the Sultanate of Adal (a multi-ethnic state comprised of Afars, Somalis, and Hararis) with Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi as their leader in 1520 successfully led a campaign which saw three-quarters of Ethiopia coming under Adal rule before being defeated by a joint Ethiopian-Portuguese force at the Battle of Wayna Daga on February 21, 1543.

The Ajuuraan Sultanate flourished in the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries. Following the collapse of Adal and Ajuuraan in the early and late seventeenth century, current-day Somalia saw the growth and gradual rise of many successor city states, such as the Sultanates of eastern Sanaag, of Bari, and of Hobyo. However due to competing Somali clans that lived in the region for thousands of years, until 1960, when Italy and Britain combined their Somali colonies into a single Somali state, Somalia was not a country. After the British and Italians drew boundaries and lines, and then after the independence of all previously self-governing Somali clans, it gradually became a new united nation of Somalia in the 1960s.

The country is made of various competing clans and sub-clans, which has made unity very difficult, as is also the case presently. Due to the forced alleged acceptance of a Somalia state, since the post colonization era, the historically self-governing clans in the north have currently (unofficially) separated from Somalia after voting for independence of the Somaliland nation. President Aden Abdullah Osman, who is seen as the founding father of the Somalia state, was the first president after its creation in 1960.

Colonial period

The year 1884 ended a long period of comparative peace. At the Berlin Conference of 1884, the scramble for Africa started the long and bloody process of the imperial partition of Somali lands. The French, British and Italians came to Somalia in the late nineteenth century.

The British claimed British Somaliland as a protectorate in 1886 after the withdrawal of Egypt and the treaty with the Warsangali clan. Egypt sought to prevent European colonial expansion in Northeast Africa. The southern area, claimed by Italy in 1889, became known as Italian Somaliland. The northernmost stretch became part of the French Territory of Afars and Issas, also known as French Somaliland, until it later achieved independence as Djibouti.

Mohammed Abdullah Hassan (Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan, Sayyid) (born April 7, 1864, in the north of Somalia, died December 21, 1920 in Imi, Ethiopia) was Somalia's religious and nationalist leader (called the "Mad Mullah" by the British) who for 20 years led armed resistance to the British, Italian, and Ethiopian forces in Somalia.

World War II

File:SYL-Freedom.jpg

Somali Youth League Monument

Fascist Italy, under the dictatorship of Benito Mussolini, tried to pursue its colonialist expansion policy and attacked Abyssinia (now Ethiopia) in 1935. The invasion was condemned by the League of Nations, but little was done to stop Italian military and industrial build-up. Abyssinia was occupied, and the government of Emperor Haile Selassie I was exiled to the UK. In England, the Emperor appealed to the international community. Little was done to liberate occupied Ethiopia. Britain would regret the failure of it and its allies to impose sanctions on Italy.

In August 1940, Italian troops crossed the Ethiopian border and invaded British Somalia to take the colony from the United Kingdom. The invasion was launched on August 3, and concluded with the taking of Berbera on August 14.

The British launched a campaign in January 1942 from Kenya to liberate Italian Somaliland, British Somaliland and Italian-occupied Ethiopia, again with many Somalis being incorporated to fight a war led by foreigners. By February, most of Italian Somaliland was captured. In March, British Somaliland was retaken by a sea invasion.

In 1949 the U.N. gave Somalia as a protectorate to Italy until it achieved independence in 1960. The Ogaden province of Somalia was given to the now repatriated Ethiopian government by the British Empire. The United Kingdom kept British Somaliland (now Somaliland or northern Somalia) under its colonial rule. The French too kept Djibouti under colonial administration, and Djibouti would not gain independence until 1977. Though Somalis and other Africans fought hard on the Allied side in World War II, they were re-subjugated soon after the conflict. The bitterness of lost hope strengthened the long struggle against colonialism, and in most parts of Africa, including Somalia, independence movements and liberation struggles occurred.

1960s–1990s

The independence of the British Somaliland Protectorate from the United Kingdom was proclaimed on 26 June 1960. On 1 July 1960, unification of the British and ex-Italian Somaliland took place. The government was formed by Abdullahi Issa. Aden Abdullah Osman Daar was appointed as President and Abdirashid Ali Shermarke as Prime Minister. Later, in 1967, Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal became Prime Minister in the government appointed by Abdirishid Ali Shermarke. Egal was later chosen as President of the self-declared independent Somaliland.

In late 1969, a military government assumed power following the assassination of Shermarke, who had been chosen, and served as, president from 1967–1969. Mohamed Siad Barre, a General in the armed forces, and General Jama Korshel in the police forces led the Coup d'état after the assassination. Barre became the President in 1969 and Korshel the vice president following a coup d'état. The revolutionary army leaders, headed by Siad Barre, established large-scale public works programs. They also successfully implemented an urban and rural literacy campaign, in which they helped to dramatically increase the literacy rate from a mere 5% to 55% by the mid-1980s. In the meantime, Barre assassinated a major figure in his cabinet, Major General Gabiere, and two other officials.

Fakr ad-Din mosque

Between 1977 and 1978, Somalia fought with its neighbor Ethiopia in the Ogaden War. The goal of Somali nationalism was to liberate and unite the Somali lands divided and subjugated under colonialism. The Somali state engaged its neighbors Kenya and Ethiopia diplomatically, hoping to win the right of self-determination for ethnic Somalis in those countries. However, Somalis were being expelled from Ogaden province, and Somalia, already preparing for war since the failure of diplomacy, supported the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF, then called Western Somali Liberation Front, WSLF). Eventually, Somalia sought to capture Ogaden province, and acted unilaterally without consulting the international community, which was generally opposed to redrawing colonial boundaries. Somalia's communist allies, the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact, refused to help Somalia, and instead, backed Ethiopia. For most of the war, Somalia appeared to be winning, and in fact, retook most of Ogaden province. With Somali forces at the gates of Addis Ababa, Soviet and Cuban forces and weapons came to the aid of Ethiopia. The Somali Army was decimated and, soon, defeated. During the Soviet and Cuban intervention, Somalia sought the help of the United States. The Carter Administration originally expressed interest in helping Somalia and then later declined. American allies in the Middle East and Asia also refused to assist Somalia. The Americans perhaps did not want to engage the Soviets in this period of détente.

In 1978, the moral authority of the Somali government collapsed with many Somalis becoming disillusioned with life under military dictatorship. The regime in the 1980s weakened as the Cold War drew to a close and Somalia's strategic importance was diminished. The government became increasingly totalitarian, and resistance movements, encouraged by Ethiopia for its own strategic interests, sprang up across the country, eventually leading to civil war in 1991.

In 1991, first insurgent forces led by Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, leader of the Somali Salvation Democratic Front, and President Ali Mahdi Muhammad was unrecognized as the interim president by some factions. The same year, the northern portion of the country declared its independence as Somaliland; although de facto independent and relatively stable compared to the tumultuous south, it has not been recognized by any foreign government. In the period 1991-1992, a split in the southern United Somali Congress, which led efforts to unseat Barre, caused an escalation in the civil war, especially in the Mogadishu area.

The civil war disrupted agriculture and food distribution in southern Somalia. The resulting famine caused the United Nations Security Council in 1992 to authorize a limited peacekeeping operation called United Nations Operation in Somalia, known as UNOSOM I. UNOSOM's use of force was limited to self defense and it was soon disregarded by the warring factions. In reaction to the continued violence and the humanitarian disaster, the United States organized a military coalition with the purpose of creating a secure environment in southern Somalia for the conduct of humanitarian operations. The coalition, called Unified Task Force or UNITAF entered Somalia in December 1992 on Operation Restore Hope and was successful in restoring order and alleviating the famine. In May of 1993, most of the United States troops withdrew and UNITAF was replaced by United Nations Operation in Somalia II, or UNOSOM II. Somali Warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid saw the UNOSOM II nation-building efforts as a threat to his power. In June 1993, militia loyal to Aidid attacked UNOSOM II Pakistani Army troops in Mogadishu inflicting over 80 casualties. Fighting between Aidid forces and UNOSOM II elements escalated until 19 American troops and more than 1,000 Somalis were killed in a raid in Mogadishu in October 1993 when two helicopters (Supers 61 & 64) were shot down (as portrayed in the film Black Hawk Down). American troops explored the crash sites and tried to secure them. In the second Black Hawk crash site, two American snipers went in and found one pilot alive, but were later killed by Somalis as well as the pilot captured.

The UN withdrew in Operation United Shield by March 3, 1995, having suffered significant casualties, and the rule of government has not yet been restored.

In June 1996, Mohamed Farrah Aidid was killed in the capital of Mogadishu.

Yet another secession from Somalia took place in the northeastern region. The self-governing state took the name Puntland after declaring itself autonomous in 1998, with the intention that it would participate in any Somali reconciliation to form a new central government. Puntland considers itself still within the Somali Republic.

2000 – Present

Political organization

In 2002, Southwestern Somalia, comprising Bay, Bakool, Jubbada Dhexe (Middle Juba), Gedo, Shabeellaha Hoose (Lower Shabele) and Jubbada Hoose (Lower Juba) regions of Somalia declared itself autonomous. However, at the time of its declaration, the Rahanweyn Resistance Army, established in 1999, was in full control of Bay and Bakool and parts of Gedo and Jubbada Dhexe regions only. This temporary secession was reasserted in 2002, leading to de facto autonomy of Southwestern Somalia. An internal armed conflict between Hasan Muhammad Nur Shatigadud and his two deputies, weakened it militarily. From February 2006, this area and the city of Baidoa became central to the Transitional Federal Government (TFG).

File:Location federal.png

Areas directly administered by the Transitional Federal Government

In 2004, the TFG organized and wrote a charter for the governing of the nation. The government wrote the charter in Nairobi. The TFG capital is presently in Baidoa.

Somalia at the height of Islamist power, December 2006

In 2006, the Islamic Courts Union rose to predominant control of Somalia. They took over the capital of Mogadishu in thend Ba Secottle of Mogadishu in May–June and began to spread their control through the rest of the country.

Another secession occurred in July 2006 with the declaration of regional autonomy by the state of Jubaland nominally consisting of parts of Gedo, Jubbada Dhexe, and the whole of Jubbada Hoose region. Barre Adan Shire Hiiraale, chairman of the Administration of Juba Valley Alliance, who comes from Galguduud region, in central Somalia is the most powerful leader there. This regional government did not want full statehood.

2006 Civil War

A conflict to unseat the warlords broke out in early 2006 between an alliance of Mogadishu warlords known as the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism or "ARPCT" and a militia loyal to Islamic Courts Union or "ICU." Several hundred people, mostly civilians, died in the crossfire. Mogadishu residents described it as the worst fighting in more than a decade. The Islamists accused the U.S. of funding the warlords through the Central Intelligence Agency in an effort to prevent the Islamists gaining power. The United States Department of State, while neither admitting nor denying this, said the U.S. had taken no action that violated the international arms embargo of Somalia. A few e-mails describing covert illegal operations by private military companies in breach of UN regulations have been reported by the UK Sunday newspaper The Observer. The U.N. maintains an arms embargo on Somalia, and some have alleged that the U.S. broke international law by supplying the Mogadishu warlords.

On June 5, 2006 the Islamic Militia said it had taken control of the whole of Mogadishu following the Second Battle of Mogadishu. On 14 June 2006 the last ARPCT stronghold in southern Somalia, the town of Jowhar, fell with little resistance to the ICU. The remaining ARPCT forces fled to the east or across the border into Ethiopia. The warlords' alliance effectively collapsed.

The UN-recognized Transitional Government then called for intervention by a regional East African peacekeeping force. ICU leaders opposed this, and lobbied African Union (AU) member states at an AU ceremony in Libya on September 9 2006 to abandon plans to send peacekeepers to Somalia. The Islamists were fiercely opposed to foreign troops — particularly Ethiopians — in Somalia.

Somalia and Ethiopia had fought a bitter war in 1977–78 over the Somali province of Ogaden, which has been ruled by the Ethiopians since the partition of Somali lands in the first half of the 20th century by the British Empire. In addition, the ICU claimed that Ethiopia, with its long history as an imperial power, seeks to occupy Somalia, or rule it by proxy.

Steadily the Islamist militia backing the ICU took control of much of the southern half of Somalia, normally through negotiation with local clan chiefs rather than by the use of force. The Islamists stayed clear of the government headquarters town of Baidoa, which Ethiopia said it would protect if threatened. But on September 25 2006, the ICU moved into the southern port of Kismayo, the last remaining port held by the transitional government.

Many Somali refugees, as well as the UN recognized transitional government of Somalia, then lived close to the border of Ethiopia, protected by Ethiopian troops. The Islamist Militia issued a war declaration against Ethiopia on October 9, 2006.

On Wednesday, November 1, 2006, peace talks between the UN-recognized transitional government in the North and the Islamists of the south broke down. The international community feared an all-out civil war, with Ethiopian and rival Eritrean forces backing opposing sides in the power-struggle and political deadlock between the appointed transitional government and the ICU.

War erupted on Thursday, December 21, 2006 when the leader of ICU, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys said: "Somalia is in a state of war, and all Somalis should take part in this struggle against Ethiopia," after which heavy fighting broke out between the Islamist militia on one side and the Somali Transitional Government allied with Ethiopian forces on the other.

On Sunday, December 24, 2006, Ethiopian forces launched unilateral airstrikes against Islamist troops and strong points across Somalia. Ethiopian Information Minister Berhan Hailu stated that targets included the town of Buurhakaba, near the administration's base in Baidoa. This was the first use of airstrikes by Ethiopia and also its first public admission of involvement in Somalia.

That same day, Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi announced that his country was waging war against the Islamists to protect his country's sovereignty. "Ethiopian defence forces were forced to enter into war to the protect the sovereignty of the nation and to blunt repeated attacks by Islamic courts terrorists and anti-Ethiopian elements they are supporting," he said.

On Monday, December 25, 2006 Ethiopia declared war on the Islamic Courts, and one Ethiopian jet fighter strafed Mogadishu International Airport, without apparently causing serious damage but prompting the airport to be shut down. Other Ethiopian jet fighters attacked a military airport west of Mogadishu.

Days of heavy fighting followed as Ethiopian and government troops backed by tanks and jets pushed against Islamist forces between Baidoa and Mogadishu. Both sides claimed to have inflicted hundreds of casualties, but the Islamist infantry and vehicle artillery were badly beaten and forced to retreat toward Mogadishu. On December 28, 2006, the allies entered Mogadishu after Islamist fighters fled the city.

The Islamists retreated south, towards their stronghold in Kismayo, fighting rearguard actions in several towns. They abandoned Kismayo, too, without a fight, claiming that their flight was a strategic withdrawal to avoid civilian casualties. They entrenched around the small town of Ras Kamboni, at the southernmost tip of Somalia and on the border with Kenya. In early January, the Ethiopians and the Somali government attacked, capturing the Islamist positions and driving the surviving fighters into the hills and forests after several days of combat. On Tuesday, January 9, 2007, the United States openly intervened in Somalia by sending Lockheed AC-130 gunships to attack Islamist positions in Ras Kamboni. Dozens were killed. By then the ICU were largely defeated.

Politics

Somalia has had no effective national government since 1991, though there is an internationally recognized government in Mogadishu and Baidoa. This government, called the Transitional Federal Government, controls only Southern Somalia and is not recognized by most Somalis to be legitimate with popular resistance movements of the Islamic Courts Union fighting the Ethiopian troops helping the government. The Transitional Government was appointed abroad, by forces historically opposed to Somali interests such as Ethiopia and various African countries seeking to limit the extent and scope of Somali development and eventual encroachment on occupied Somali lands. In the northwest, there is the breakaway republic of Somaliland, which declared its independence in 1991. This governing zone is not internationally recognized although it has remained more stable and certainly more peaceful than the south and northeast. Puntland in the northeast declared itself autonomous in 1998 and has not joined the Transitional Government, though the former president of Puntland is now the president of the Baidoa government and Puntland has stated its desire to join a future federated state. In the southeastern interior, Jubaland and Southwestern Somalia have both joined the Baidoa government, and its leaders are part of the Baidoa parliament.

The other half of the country, with the bulk of the population, was controlled until the end of December 2006 by the Islamic Courts Union (ICU), which controlled the critically important cities of Mogadishu and, since September 24, 2006, Kismayo. As of January 2007, the situation is unstable. The Islamic Courts seek to institute Sharia law in Somalia. Social law changes, such as the forbidding of chewing khat, and even the prohibition against watching movies and soccer in public, have become recent movements by the ICU to change behaviours and impose strict social morals.

The Council is led by Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. When asked if the ICU plans to extend its control to the rest of Somalia, Sheikh Ahmed responded in an interview: "Land is not our priority. Our priority is the people's peace, dignity and that they could live in liberty, that they could decide their own fate. That is our priority. Our priority is not land; the people are important to us." | Sheikh Sherif welcomes dialogue with Washington, ANN, Jun 9, 2006]

On October 14, 2004, Somali members of parliament elected Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, previously president of Puntland, to be the next president. Because of the situation in Mogadishu, the election was held in a sports center in Nairobi, Kenya. Yusuf was elected transitional President by Transitional Federal Parliament. He won 189 of the 275 votes from members of parliament. The session of Parliament was also held in neighboring Kenya. His government is recognized by most Western nations as legitimate.

Many other small political organizations exist, some clan-based, others seeking a Somalia free from clan-based politics. Many of them have come into existence since the civil war.

In late 2006, the Transitional Federal Parliament controlled only a relatively small portion of the country; by some accounts its control barely extended beyond the limits of its capital city of Baidoa. The political situation remains unstable; for example, on September 18, 2006, Abdullah Yusuf barely survived a suicide attack on his convoy in Baidoa, although twelve other people were killed. Over the course of late December 2006, The Transitional Government, with the aid of Ethiopian troops, extended its control over much of the country, and the Islamists retreated. In January 2007 they were attacked in the remote stronghold of Ras Kamboni in the extreme southern tip of the country.

Capital

Mogadishu is the capital of Somalia. In 2006, Mogadishu became part of the territory controlled by the Islamic Courts Union. While the Transitional Federal Government had its seat in Baidoa it was also considered a capital.

On December 28, 2006, troops of the U.N.-backed interim government rolled into Mogadishu unopposed, putting an end to six months of domination of the capital by a radical Islamic movement. Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Ghedi declared that Mogadishu had been secured, after meeting with local clan leaders to discuss the peaceful hand-over of the city. Yet as of the August 2, 2007 the federal transitional government and its Ethiopian allies with AU support are still having to cope with daily attacks in Mogadishu from a Somali Islamic insurgency.

Administrative divisions

Political map of Somalia.

Somalia is divided into eighteen regions (gobollada, sing. gobol), which in turn are subdivided into districts. The regions are:

1 Awdal 2 Bakool 3 Banaadir 4 Bari 5 Bay 6 Galguduud

7 Gedo   8 Hiiraan   9 Jubbada Hoose 10 Shabeellaha Hoose 11 Mudug 12 Jubbada Dhexe

13 Shabeellaha Dhexe 14 Nugaal 15 Sanaag 16 Sool 17 Togdheer 18 Woqooyi Galbeed

Somalia continues to have one of the highest child mortality rates in the world, with 10% of children dying at birth and 25% of those surviving birth dying before age five. On the other hand, Somalia also has one of the lowest HIV infection rates in Africa.

The breadth of the AIDS pandemic has led to the idea in the West that the entire continent is ravaged by the disease. But Somalia — isolated for 14 years since the civil war began and populated by devout Muslims — has an infection rate of perhaps only 1.5 or 2 per cent of the adult population.

Stephanie Nolan

Economy

Since the collapse of the state, Somalia has transformed from what Mohamed Siad Barre referred to as "Scientific Socialism" to a free market economy.

Agriculture is the most important sector, with livestock accounting for about 40 percent of GDP and about 65 percent of export earnings. Nomads and semi-nomads, who are dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population. After livestock, bananas are the principal export; sugar, sorghum, maize, and fish are products for the domestic market. The small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, accounts for 10 percent of GDP.

Telecommunications

Somalia's public telecommunications system was almost completely destroyed or dismantled. However, private wireless companies thrive in most major cities and actually provide better services than in neighboring countries. Wireless service and Internet cafes are provided. Somalia was the last African country to access the Internet in August 2000.

Environment

Somalia is a semi-arid country with about 2 percent arable land. The civil war had a huge impact on the country’s tropical forests by facilitating the production of charcoal with ever-present, recurring, but damaging droughts. Somali environmentalist and Goldman Environmental Prize winner Fatima Jibrell became the first Somali to step in and do a much-needed effort to save the rest of the environment through local initiatives that organized local communities to protect the rural and coastal habitat.

Demographics

File:Bosaso2.jpg

Bosaso is the fastest growing city of Somalia, having quadrupled in size during the Somali civil war.

This 2002 CIA map shows population density throughout Somalia.

Somalia has a population of around 10,700,000 according to UN estimates in 2003, 85 percent of which constitute ethnic Somalis.

Somali children

There is little reliable statistical information on urbanization in Somalia. However, rough estimates have been made indicating an urbanization of 5 percent and 8 percent per annum, with many towns rapidly growing into cities. Currently, 34 percent of the Somali population lives in towns and cities, with the percentage rapidly increasing. [1]

Because of the civil war, the country has a large diaspora community, one of the largest of the whole continent. There are over a million Somalis outside of Africa, and this excludes those who have inhabited Ogaden province, northeastern Kenya, and Djibouti.

Languages

Somali is the main language and is used virtually everywhere. Nearly every Somali citizen speaks it. Minority languages do exist, such as Af-Maay, which is spoken in areas in south-central Somalia by the Rahanweyn tribes, as well as variants of Swahili (Barawe), which are spoken along the coast by Arabs.

A considerable amount of Somalis speak Arabic due to religious reasons and ties with the Arab world and media. English is also widely used and taught, Italian used to be a major language but due to the civil war and lack of education only the older generation speaks it.

Religion

File:Somaliamosque11.jpg

Eid celebrations in Mogadishu.

The Somalis are almost entirely Sunni Muslims. Christianity's influence was significantly reduced in the 1970s when church-run schools were closed and missionaries sent home. There has been no archbishop of the Catholic cathedral in the country since 1989; the cathedral in Mogadishu was severely damaged in the civil war of January-February 1992.

The Somali constitution discourages the promotion and propagation of any religion other than Islam. Loyalty to Islam is what reinforces distinctions that set Somalis apart from their immediate African neighbors, many of whom are either Christians (particularly the Amhara people and others of Ethiopia and Kenya) or adherents of indigenous African faiths.

Education

With the collapse of the central government in 1991, the education system is now private. Primary schools have risen from 600 before the civil war to 1,172 schools today, with an increase of 28% in primary school enrollment over the last 3 years. In 2006, Puntland, an autonomous state, was the second in Somalia (after Somaliland) to introduce free primary schools with teachers now receiving their salaries from the Puntland administration. In Mogadishu, the Benadir University, the Somalia National University, and the Mogadishu University are three of the eight universities that teach Higher education in Southern Somalia. In Puntland, higher education is provided by the Puntland State University and East Africa University. In Somaliland, it's provided by Amoud University, Hargeisa University and Burao University. Three Somali Universities are currently ranked in the top 100 of Africa. Quranic schools (also known as duqsi's) remain the basic system of instruction for religion in Somalia. They provide Islamic education for children, thereby filling a clear religious and social role in the country. Known as the most stable, local, and non-formal education providing basic religious and moral instruction, their strength rests on community support and their use of locally made and widely available teaching materials.

The Qu'ranic system, which teaches the greatest number of students relative to the other education sub-sectors, is the only system accessible to nomadic Somalis compared to the urban Somalis who have easier access to education. In 1993, a survey by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) was conducted in which it found, among other things, that about 40% of pupils in Qu'ranic schools were girls] This is quite amazing compared to secular education where gender disparity is much greater.

Culture

Cuisine

Variety of Somali dishes incorporating rice, vegetables, salads and stews.

The cuisine of Somalia varies from region to region and it encompasses different styles of cooking. One thing that unites the Somali food is its being Halal. Therefore, there are no pork dishes, alcohol is not served, nothing that died on its own is eaten and no blood is incorporated. Somali people serve dinner as late as 9 pm. During Ramadan, it is often eaten after Tarawih prayers — sometimes as late as 11 pm. Cambuulo is one of Somalia's most popular dishes and is enjoyed throughout the country as a dinner meal. The dish is made out of well-cooked azuki beans, mixed with butter and sugar. The beans, which by themselves are called digir, are often left on the stove for as many as five hours, on low heat, to achieve the most desired taste.

Literature

Somalia produced a large amount of literature through Islamic poetry and Hadith from Somali scholars of the last centuries. With the adoption of the Latin script in 1973 numerous Somali authors have released books over the years which received widespread success, Nuruddin Farah being one of them. Novels like From a Crooked Rib and Links are considered important literary achievements which earned him the 1998 Neustadt International Prize for Literature.

Music

Somalia has the distinction of being one of only a handful of African countries that are composed almost entirely of one ethnic group, the Somalis. Traditional bands likeWaaberi Horseed have gained a small following outside the country. Others, like Maryam Mursal, have fused Somali traditional music with rock, bossa nova, hip hop, and jazz influences. Most Somali music is love orientated, but some recall how life was in Somalia before the civil war and some talk about how Somalis should come together to unite and restore the country to its former glory.

Toronto, where a sizable Somali community exists, replaced Mogadishu (because of the instability) as the center of the Somali music industry; it's also present in London, Minneapolis, and Columbus. One popular musician from the Somali diaspora is K'naan, a young rapper from Toronto, whose songs talk about the struggles of life in Somalia during the outbreak of the civil war.

Gallery of Somalia related pictures

• King Ahmed Gurey Mog.jpg

  Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi.

• HawoTakoFreedom.jpg

  Hawo Tako.

• Somalia-1.jpg

  Dhagaxtuur Monument

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Lewis. I.M. "Pastoral Democracy: A study on Pastoralism and Politics among the Northern Somali clans." Ohio: Ohio University Press, 1958.

External links

• Condemn US-Ethiopian aggression against Somalia Lalkar January 2007
• Somalia Operations: Lessons Learned by Kenneth Allard (CCRP, 1995)
• From Nation-State to Stateless Nation: The Somali Experience by Michael van Notten (Amsterdam, 2000)

Government

• Official Website of the Federal Government of Somalia

News

• Somalia - War situation since 1991 on France 24 – Special Report about Somalia on France 24 International News Channel
• Somalia news headlines
• Somalia's Struggle for Stability, Online NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
• HRW claims US involved in secret detention of Somalis,Breaking Legal News 2007/04/01

Economy

• Anarchy and Invention: How Does Somalia's Private Sector Cope without Government?
• Breaking Legal News 2007/04/01

General information

• Open Directory Project - Somalia
• CBC Digital Archives - The Somalia Affair
• News and Discussions
• Nolosha Cusub

UNESCO

• UNESCO Nairobi office on education in Somalia
• UNESCO Nairobi Office - Fact Book on Education For All, Somalia 2006

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