Remarks by H.E. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud President of the Federal Republic of Somalia At the Special Conference on Somalia on the Margins of TICAD V Yokohama, Japan, May 31, 2013
H.E. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan,
Fellow Heads of States and Governments
Excellencies, distinguished participants,
Ladies and Gentlemen
I am delighted to attend this Special Conference on Somalia on the eve of
the Fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V).
On behalf of the people and the government of Somalia I would like to thank
the people and the Government of Japan for its leadership to host this
special meeting on Somalia and Japan’s unwavering support to the people of
Somalia. This timely special meeting on Somalia here in Yokohama shows
Japan’s commitment to Somalia and we value very much.
Our objective over the next few hours is to examine to some detail the
socio-economic aspects of my government’s nation-building and peace
building efforts. In particular, measures to support our Somali-led efforts
to achieve economic recovery and service delivery capabilities under my Six
Pillar Policy Framework.
We need to get back to basics so that to understand the right approach
required in Somalia’s recovery and development agenda and to tackle the
root causes of instability. Security is pre-requisite to development and
stability in Somalia.
Excellencies,
On different occasions I presented about the journey towards our
socio-economic stability through incremental stages. Somalia needs to move
from emergency situation to recovery and to development. Simultaneously,
the international community’s mode of engagement must also undertake
similar steps as the security situation of the country improves, hence, we
need to move from short-term humanitarian assistance to long-term
reconstruction and development using the potential, creativity and the
resilience of the Somali people and their communities in the Diaspora. It
is all about empowering the Somali people.
My vision for Somalia is for a united and federal Somalia and a Somalia at
peace with itself and with its neighbors, which poses no threat to the
global peace and security. We would like to see a Somalia that enjoys
security stability, political stability and economic stability with a
resurgent economy and with a thriving small and medium sized businesses; a
Somalia with a national institutions that can generate sustainable
employment.
Excellencies,
As we move to recovery and development, the following four areas are
necessary for stable and prosperous Somalia.
· We must provide human security through active participation
with the community in order to uphold the rule of law, restore law and
order, undertake justice reform and establish credible law enforcement
agencies.
· We must continue to provide basic human needs – food, water,
shelter, disease control – for the most vulnerable people of our society
through sustainable agriculture, water and health projects.
· Good Governance must be accelerated and government
institutions must be visible in delivering basic services to the nation.
All levels of government must also work expeditiously and create the
legislations and the regulatory platform required for future social and
economic growth and development.
· And most importantly, we must start the engine of economic
revival by engaging the private sector and seeking direct foreign
investment.
We could achieve simultaneously all these four areas and we will be able
to generate the momentum that will tap the potential of our people into a
real development phase with confidence.
*Governance and economic revival.*
Excellencies,
My Administration has a plan to push governance out into the recovered
districts and regions as quickly as possible, and establish to each
district the provision of five basic social services – a school, a health
centre, a water well, a police station, and a local administration complex.
To do this, we need our partners to enable the government with the
resources and the expertise to deliver and maintain these five simple
services.
To promote economic recovery we need a vibrant private sector that can
create business opportunities, employment, and attract foreign investment,
which in turn could help the government to generate taxes, in order to
deliver social services.
As you are all aware, all our institutions have collapsed, both
structurally and technically. The staffs are often volunteers, doing jobs
as best they can without training or experience. Of course staff turnover
is high, as most cannot afford to stay for long without regular income.
Most of our senior staff are asked to work for the thanks of a grateful
nation.
I appeal to you all to consider effective support to the government so
that we create an environment conducive to good planning and the
establishment of a civil service capable of building the sort of corporate
knowledge that governments across the world enjoy.
We need human resource development within the Federal Government of
Somalia and local authorities, to enable delivery of basic social services
and to promote economic recovery. We are trying to develop a roadmap for
‘Human and Institutional Capacity Building in Somalia’.
With regard to economic recovery, the world will discover that it has the
finest partner. A more naturally business oriented and entrepreneurial
people you could wish to meet.
Excellencies,
We have a country wealthy in resources and opportunities that can be used
to restore peace and prosperity to its people. We have a growing political
unity and a confident administration ready to move forward and face the
post conflict challenges.
We do not seek dependence on aid but rather seek investment to sensitize
our potentiality for quick recovery and development.
With more than 70% of our population below the age of 35 and with the vast
majority of the youth unemployed, the importance of creating employment
opportunities is as critical as ever. As we have seen all over the world, a
disaffected, unemployed youth is a huge cause of instability.
At the heart of social stability are fully employed men and women. When
the people of Somalia are gainfully employed in legitimate business and
employment, they will drive the country forward and leave behind the
quarrels and troubles of the past.
Somalia is located in a very strategic position on the Eastern cost of
Africa, and has the largest coastal belt in Africa. Somalia is the Eastern
gateway to Africa, but we need to improve our ports facilities through
which to maximize trading capacity.
Somalia guards the Southern edge of the world’s busiest and most important
trade route between the Pacific region, Africa and Europe, with vast
cargoes passing through the Gulf of Aden.
We have introduced a framework for recovery and development for key areas
of intervention in the post conflict reconstruction of Somalia. These are
the areas that transform lives and get our nation back to work. It indeed
frees our people from poverty and the lure of extremism.
Finally, this Conference is expected to complement the Second London
Conference on Somalia on 7thMay, which agreed on measures to support our
plans in the areas of security, justice and public financial management.
And we hope that the outcomes of these two Conferences will be reflected in
the discussion of the conference in Brussels in September.
Thank you.
