New York – 15 February 2022 | The Security Council held a briefing on the situation in Somalia, focusing on the electoral process, as well as the reconfiguration of the African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM, where invited to brief the Council were the Special Representative for Somalia and the Head of the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), Mr. James Swan, the Head of the African Union Mission in Somalia, Mr. Francisco Madeira, and the Head of the EU Delegation to the UN, Ambassador Olof Skoog.
SRSG Swan briefed the member states on a range of issues from the latest political developments in the country, the progress with elections for the Lower House, the security and activity of the terrorist group Al-Shabaab, as well as efforts to reach an agreement on reconfiguration of AMISOM. In the end, he informed about the humanitarian situation in the country which remains very troubling.
In his remarks, Ambassador Hoxha underlined the need for the political actors in the country to respect without further delay the deadlines for the completion of the elections in the Lower House and the creation of a new majority which will tackle the challenges of security and reforms. An important component that must be respected, he stressed, is the representation of women in the agreed quota of 30%. The completion of the electoral process will enable the new leadership to address the other priorities in the country.
Commenting on the security situation, Ambassador Hoxha noted Albania’s concern regarding the increase of Al-Shabaab terrorist activity, setting a negative record for civilian casualties in January. In this regard, he added that the completion of the re-configuration process of AMISOM is of particular importance for the handover to the Somali forces the responsibility to maintain security in the country; and described as positive the recent negotiations for this purpose between Government of Somalia and African Union.
Finally, in light of the desperate humanitarian situation, caused by long-standing conflicts, diseases, and climate change, Ambassador Hoxha called for a more strategic and pro-active approach to addressing the humanitarian situation.
