Somalia seeks donor funds to fight piracy and boost security

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Somalia’s president on Thursday urged international donors to give the country more money to fight piracy and restore order after two decades of anarchy. Mr Ban and President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed made their pleas at a conference in Brussels intended to raise at least $250 million (KSh19.8 billion) to help Somalia’s government boost security and to support an African Union force in the Horn of Africa nation.

The seizure of ships in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean by Somali gangs has driven up insurance rates and other costs in sea lanes linking Europe to Asia, and Washington has long tried to ensure al Qaeda cannot operate in Somalia. “Restoring security and stability in Somalia is vital to the success of the reconciliation effort and the survival of the unity government,” Mr Ban told the conference, held under the auspices of the United Nations. “Much remains to be done.”

Mr Ban reiterated he had no intention of sending a UN force to Somalia any time soon, saying peacekeepers would go only when “circumstances and conditions are appropriate”. Organisers of the meeting, chaired by Mr Ban and the AU, say more than $250 million is needed for next year to improve security in a state which has had no central government since 1991 and is mired in conflict.

EU officials said the aim was to build up a police force of some 10,000 personnel and a security force of 5,000. Support is also sought for the 4,300-strong African Union Mission (Amisom). Many world leaders say Sheikh Ahmed, a former Islamist rebel leader elected at UN-brokered talks in January, offers the best hope for years of restoring stability, though his administration is the 15th attempt in 18 years to set up a central government.

More than one million people have been uprooted by fighting in the past two years and one third of the population survives on food aid. “We are firmly determined to undertake reforms ... to try to alleviate the suffering of the Somali people. However, we can only achieve real progress if we manage to restore security to the country,” Sheikh Ahmed said.

He, Mr Ban and EU leaders underlined the need to combat the gangs involved in piracy on land as well as at sea. Piracy has worsened off Somalia’s coast despite the presence of naval forces from more than a dozen countries, including task forces under Nato, EU and US command.

Nato’s four-ship mission was due to wind up its operation yesterday. Diplomats were discussing whether it could be extended and Nato has said it wants tougher rules to allow the detention of captured suspects. The United States, which is reviewing its Somalia policy, plans to help build Somali security forces and bolster the new government but has made clear it has no desire to “drive” the whole process.

Sheikh Ahmed did not comment on reports that Islamist opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, who is on the US list of terrorism suspects for alleged links to al Qaeda, had returned to Somalia two years after being ousted.

And in Nairobi, the AU said political stability in Somalia needs more than a political approach. Mr Nicolas Bwakira, the AU’s Special Representative for Somalia, called for concerted international efforts to pull Somalia out of its leadership and security crises.

Brussels conference

Speaking in Nairobi ahead of a donor’s conference on Somalia in Brussels on Thursday, Mr Bwakira said the war-torn country required a strong police force and army to counter insurgents. He said the AU had confidence that the newly-elected Somalia President would fulfil his pledge to ensure security in Somalia.

“Somalia has gained momentum since the signing of the Djibouti agreement in August last year,” he added. The UN-sponsored agreement was signed between the Transitional Government and the Somali opposition on August 19 after talks in Djibouti.

Mr Bwakira said the AU commission had allocated $1 million (Sh77 million) for the training and allowances of some 2,700 police officers for Somalia, a move he said would boost security situation in Somalia. He said the money could not used for hiring new security officers.

Mr Bwakira described the humanitarian situation in Somalia as critical and said the new government would be expected to deal with it as its first priority. “We call upon humanitarian assistance,” he said adding that “the situation is bad and we call upon the United Nations and the World Food Programme to come in with assistance”.

The Horn of Africa nation has had no central government since dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991. It is grappling with Islamist insurgents fighting for power and a food crisis which has left a third of the population dependant on aid.