London International Conference on Somalia

The UK will host the London conference on Somalia on 23 February. We have secured senior attendance from the region, including from Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda, as well as from the United States, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Sweden, the African Union and the European Union. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will attend.

All together we expect around 40 governments to be represented, along with those multi-lateral organisations already mentioned, plus the World Bank, the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development, the Organisation of Islamic Conference, and the League of Arab States.

Representatives from Somalia will attend, including the leaders of the transitional federal institutions; the Mayor of Mogadishu, the Presidents of Puntland and Galmudug; and representatives of Aluh Sunnah wal Jamaah. The President of Somaliland will attend, and we welcome the experience that Somaliland can provide of peace building in the region.

The international community hopes to agree a series of practical measures including security, piracy, political process, counter-terrorism, local stability, humanitarian and international coordination.

More: Conference details

Hii vita ya Somalia iishe sasa...
Nilisoma Oxfam wanapendekeza a shift in focus for a long term solution (kwamba too much attention is given to security and counter terrosism na watu wanasahaulika)..:

"It is time for a new vision of engagement that meets Somalis' immediate and future needs, while providing the space for a negotiated peace process that puts Somalia on the road to recovery. Those attending the London Somalia Conference must seize this opportunity and help start the process to address the causes of the conflict in Somalia and put the interests and aspirations of the Somali people centre stage," said Barbara Stocking, Chief Executive, Oxfam. Source

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Mwali said:

Hii vita ya Somalia iishe sasa...
Nilisoma Oxfam wanapendekeza a shift in focus for a long term solution (kwamba too much attention is given to security and counter terrosism na watu wanasahaulika)..:

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Yea, kuna umuhimu wa ku-address the root causes za mgogoro and look for long terms solutions. Somalia ni zaidi ya tuijuavyo. Ni Afghanistan ya Afrika.

EMT said:

Yea, kuna umuhimu wa ku-address the root causes za mgogoro and look for long terms solutions. Somalia ni zaidi ya tuijuavyo. Ni Afghanistan ya Afrika.

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Mi toka nipate ufaham wa kuelewa kinachoendelea nje ya nyumbani naijua Somalia ikiwa vitani tu!
Niliwahi kukutana na mwanamke wa kisomali, very open minded, a medical doctor.
NIlishangaa sana coz kichwani mwangu nimesha jenga picha ya wanawake wa kisomali wakiwa wenye maisha magumu, wanaolewa mapema, hawasomi, wanazaa kila mwaka, prisoners of the male extremists who dictate their views on the society.
Hapo ndipo nilipoelewa kua we know nothing about them, zaidi ya hiyo vita na images tunazo pata from TV...
Ningeweza ningefika kuwasikiliza wanacho sema huko...

Mbona sioni Tanzania ikitajwa kama mwalikwa? JK si ameenda?

President Kibaki is to lead a high-powered Kenyan delegation to a conference on Somalia in London meant to pull together international effort.
Top officials from more than 40 countries and multi-lateral organisations converge in London on Thursday with the aim of delivering a new international approach to Somalia.

They will discuss how the international community can step-up its efforts to tackle both the root causes and effects of the problems in the country and way forward after expiry of the Somalia Transitional Federal Government term in August.
Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetangula who arrived from Turkey on Sunday said Internal Security Minister George Saitoti, Defence's Yusuf Haji and himself would be part of delegation to London.UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon, Uganda President Yoweri Museveni and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi are also slated to attend the crucial conference.

Mr Wetangula said Somalia leaders have come up with a structure to be used to govern the country when the transition ends on August 20.
The troubled horn of Africa country is to adopt federalism with devolved units and strong apex at the top, Mr Wetangula said.
The minister was hopeful the UN Security Council will approve Kenya's Defence Forces plans to join the African Union forces and increase of soldiers to 17,700 before the London meeting.On Sunday, a section of Somalia leaders meeting in Nairobi took issue with the London conference saying the UK government did not properly consult them on the agenda.

Led by MP Awad Ahmed Ashareh, they demanded priority be given to strengthening and establishment of Somalia security forces and that the international community sidelines the current administration for misusing the country's resources."The international community should stop giving legitimacy to leaders who do not practice transparency and accountability in use of public resources," Mr Ashareh said.They said Somalia's President and other leaders contravened the country's laws through recent agreements signed in Garowe, Puntland in meeting convened by international community.Somalia Speaker Nunow Mohamed also described the agreements as illegal.

They also told Western countries to stop dumping toxic waste on Somalia waters, over-fishing and British and Italian governments compensates Somalia for the atrocities their forces committed in the country prior to independence.They said foreign forces operating in Somalia must enter into rules of engagement with the country and respect its laws.On Sunday, the Somalia civil servants led by Abul Fartaag discussed an executive report in Nairobi on mismanagement of state funds by country's former prime minister, current PM and ministries.

Despite the efforts of the African Union, the United Nations and the international community, international policy towards Somalia has not been succeeding.After 20 years of sliding backwards, Somalia needs a step-change in effort - both from the international community, but also Somalia's political leaders.British Foreign Secretary William Hague was in Mogadishu and Nairobi early this month to lay ground for the conference.

Safari_ni_Safari said:

Mbona sioni Tanzania ikitajwa kama mwalikwa? JK si ameenda?

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JK yupo huko. Tutamsikia nae akiongea

Mwali said:

Mi toka nipate ufaham wa kuelewa kinachoendelea nje ya nyumbani naijua Somalia ikiwa vitani tu!
Niliwahi kukutana na mwanamke wa kisomali, very open minded, a medical doctor.
NIlishangaa sana coz kichwani mwangu nimesha jenga picha ya wanawake wa kisomali wakiwa wenye maisha magumu, wanaolewa mapema, hawasomi, wanazaa kila mwaka, prisoners of the male extremists who dictate their views on the society.
Hapo ndipo nilipoelewa kua we know nothing about them, zaidi ya hiyo vita na images tunazo pata from TV...
Ningeweza ningefika kuwasikiliza wanacho sema huko...

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Nasikia pesa ya Somalia ina dhamani zaidi ya shilingi yetu.

EMT said:

The UK will host the London conference on Somalia on 23 February. We have secured senior attendance from the region, including from Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda, as well as from the United States, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Sweden, the African Union and the European Union. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will attend.

All together we expect around 40 governments to be represented, along with those multi-lateral organisations already mentioned, plus the World Bank, the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development, the Organisation of Islamic Conference, and the League of Arab States.

Representatives from Somalia will attend, including the leaders of the transitional federal institutions; the Mayor of Mogadishu, the Presidents of Puntland and Galmudug; and representatives of Aluh Sunnah wal Jamaah. The President of Somaliland will attend, and we welcome the experience that Somaliland can provide of peace building in the region.

The international community hopes to agree a series of practical measures including security, piracy, political process, counter-terrorism, local stability, humanitarian and international coordination.

More: Conference details

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Asante EMT kwa hii taarifa - baadaye nitakuPM. Nimekuwa nikifuatilia huu mkasa wa vita vya Somalia na magaidi kwa karibu sana. Mawazo yangu ni kuwa amani ya kweli ya Somalia haitapatikana London au popote pale nje ya Somalia. Wafadhili na wanaoihurumia Somalia watatoa chembe ya misaada na kuwaunga mkono, lakini Wasomali wenyewe ndio wanapaswa kutatua huu mgogoro.

Mwali said:

Hii vita ya Somalia iishe sasa...
Nilisoma Oxfam wanapendekeza a shift in focus for a long term solution (kwamba too much attention is given to security and counter terrosism na watu wanasahaulika)..:

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Walimwengu tumekuwa watu wa ajabu tangu dunia imeumbwa. Attention kubwa iko kwenye security matters kwa sababu kuna vita, na kukiwa na vita viwanda vya silaha ndipo vinapofanya biashara vizuri. "Let them kill each other as long as we sell them the weapons". Sasa watu wenye mawazo namna hii, hawajali kusahau (na hata kufurahia) mateso ya watu (hasa wanawake na watoto wasio hatia", almuradi tu watu wanauza silaha zao.

Juzi nilisoma ripoti moja viongozi wa Somalia wanaomba waondolewe vikwazo vya silaha badala ya kutafuta mbinu za makubaliano baina ya waasi, "mabwana wa vita", na makundi ya koo na makabila ili vita iishe.

EMT said:

Nasikia pesa ya Somalia ina dhamani zaidi ya shilingi yetu.

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Ni kweli Mkuu, ingawa tafauti sio kubwa sana. Shilingi 1 ya Somalia = Tzs 0.95 (approx.), na SOS 1 = USD0.00060 wakati TZs 1= USD 0.00062.

EMT said:

Nasikia pesa ya Somalia ina dhamani zaidi ya shilingi yetu.

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Nimejaribu haraka online, it is almost the same mkuu:
1tsh=1.02 Somali shilling
But maybe in the market, depending on where you are, na whether you are buying or selling, ukakuta wametuzidi.
But this is an eye opener kwangu... kama pesa yao inathamani kama ya TZ after all this time, itakuaje waki-stabilize nchi yao?

MAMMAMIA said:

Walimwengu tumekuwa watu wa ajabu tangu dunia imeumbwa. Attention kubwa iko kwenye security matters kwa sababu kuna vita, na kukiwa na vita viwanda vya silaha ndipo vinapofanya biashara vizuri. "Let them kill each other as long as we sell them the weapons". Sasa watu wenye mawazo namna hii, hawajali kusahau (na hata kufurahia) mateso ya watu (hasa wanawake na watoto wasio hatia", almuradi tu watu wanauza silaha zao.
Juzi nilisoma ripoti moja viongozi wa Somalia wanaomba waondolewe vikwazo vya silaha badala ya kutafuta mbinu za makubaliano baina ya waasi, "mabwana wa vita", na makundi ya koo na makabila ili vita iishe.

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NImejaribu kufatilia ili nijue outcome ni nini hasa: haya nimeyatoa International Crisis Group Blog (they will attend too, of course):

Leaders are seeking to capitalise on the recent weakening of Al Shabaab, the Islamist group allied to Al Qaeda. They also hope to take advantage of increased international attention on Somalia due to ongoing piracy and last year's famine in the Horn of Africa, which is only slowly relaxing its grip and has thus far left 3.2 million in need of life-saving assistance.
Expectations for the one-day event are high. British Foreign Minister William Hague has said the conference comes at a "moment of opportunity". Somalia's Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali wants the conference to produce a "Marshall Plan" for the war-torn country. High hopes for a grand political, security, or development strategy for Somalia's complex problems are, however, bound to be dashed. More likely to emerge is an incremental strategy that leaves the door open for further engagement and, hopefully, an eventual political solution.
International consensus is coalescing around a refusal to extend the mandate of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) – a body long riven by internal divisions and corruption – when its current term ends in August. What happens when TFG disbands, and the political structures that replace it, will be critical to whether Somalia can lift itself out of chaos.

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Nikisoma hapo sioni kabisa wakiongelea mid and long term, they focus on coming out of the emergency but not sustaining the peace and security...

Amavubi said:

........Kicheksho sana.....eti Mkutano wa Kujadili Hali ya SomaliA unafanyika London...........!!!!???

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Yeah, it draws parallels to 18th Century colonialist strategies! Waafrica tunamepigwa mazingaombwe na kujiona kama vile tuko huru wakati ukweli ni kwamba serikali zetu bado ni vibaraka wa magh'ribi. Matatizo yetu eti ni lazima yatatuliwe na wazungu. Duhu!

Askari Kanzu said:

Yeah, it draws parallels to 18th Century colonialist strategies! Waafrica tunamepigwa mazingaombwe na kujiona kama vile tuko huru wakati ukweli ni kwamba serikali zetu bado ni vibaraka wa magh'ribi. Matatizo yetu eti ni lazima yatatuliwe na wazungu. Duhu!

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Ndo hayo aliyosema Mugabe waafrika bado wapigia magoti wazungu.....wanaitwa na waingereza eti kutatua matatizo ya Somalia baada ya zaidi ya miaka ishirini.

Sioni sababu ya JK kwenda mkutano huo....matatizo ya somalia hakuna wa kuyamaliza bali wao.....wakichoka wataacha na kujenga nchi yao.

Wazungu wanaangalia mambo yao sasa hivi baada ya kupatikana kwa mafuta ndio wanatafuta suluhisho.

Amavubi said:

........Kicheksho sana.....eti Mkutano wa Kujadili Hali ya SomaliA unafanyika London...........!!!!???

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As if they couldn't hold that meeting here in Africa....na kama ni venue we have new AU headquarters in Ethiopia na hawa viongozi wetu wanakubali tu..............

Mwali said:

Mi toka nipate ufaham wa kuelewa kinachoendelea nje ya nyumbani naijua Somalia ikiwa vitani tu!
Niliwahi kukutana na mwanamke wa kisomali, very open minded, a medical doctor.
NIlishangaa sana coz kichwani mwangu nimesha jenga picha ya wanawake wa kisomali wakiwa wenye maisha magumu, wanaolewa mapema, hawasomi, wanazaa kila mwaka, prisoners of the male extremists who dictate their views on the society.
Hapo ndipo nilipoelewa kua we know nothing about them, zaidi ya hiyo vita na images tunazo pata from TV...
Ningeweza ningefika kuwasikiliza wanacho sema huko...

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It is always the best thing kusikia from the horse's mouth.......other than ku-rely on biased international media. Na mgogoro wa matatizo ya Somalia utamalizika kwa kupitia Wasomali wenyewe na si kuitisha mkutano a million miles away from Somalia in the name of solving the problem...

Na mie nimepata experience kama yako ingawa si ya wasomali bali wapelistina...wa kawaida tu ambao wanajua historia ya nchi yao vizuri na mgogoro walio nao na Israel. ukipata kusikia kwa wazawa kweli unakuwa na different perspective of the whole issue.

Mwali said:

Nimejaribu haraka online, it is almost the same mkuu:1tsh=1.02 Somali shilling...But this is an eye opener kwangu... kama pesa yao inathamani kama ya TZ after all this time, itakuaje waki-stabilize nchi yao?

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Kama unamjua mtu BOT muulize mkopo wetu wa kwanza IMF/World Bank tulidhaminiwa na Somalia miaka ya 80 lol!

uporoto01 said:

Kama unamjua mtu BOT muulize mkopo wetu wa kwanza IMF/World Bank tulidhaminiwa na Somalia miaka ya 80 lol!

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Is it??? Uchumi wao unategemea nini zaidi? mi hata siijui vizuri hii nchi. Ngoja nisome Wikipedia kwanza:
- According to the CIA and the Central Bank of Somalia, despite experiencing civil unrest, Somalia has maintained a healthy informal economy, based mainly on livestock, remittance/money transfer companies and telecommunications. Due to a dearth of formal government statistics and the recent civil war, it is difficult to gauge the size or growth of the economy. For 1994, the CIA estimated the GDP at $3.3 billion.In 2001, it was estimated to be $4.1 billion. By 2009, the CIA estimated that the GDP had grown to $5.731 billion, with a projected real growth rate of 2.6%
- The Central Bank of Somalia indicates that the country's GDP per capita is $333, which is lower than that of Kenya at $350, but better than that of Tanzania at $280 as well as Eritrea at $190 and Ethiopia at $100.However, the CIA puts Somalia's GDP per capita at $600.

Mwali said:

Is it??? Uchumi wao unategemea nini zaidi? mi hata siijui vizuri hii nchi. Ngoja nisome kwanza.

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Unakumbuka wale samaki wa 'Magufuli' ? Somalia badala ya kuibiwa wanavua wenyewe na kuuza Ulaya,pia huuza nyama/ngozi uarabuni kote bila ushuru kwakuwa wako Arab league na huwezi amini wanasafirisha ndizi mbivu Ulaya nzima wakishindana na Carribean na America ya kati nimezila Uswisi.

MAMMAMIA said:

Asante EMT kwa hii taarifa - baadaye nitakuPM. Nimekuwa nikifuatilia huu mkasa wa vita vya Somalia na magaidi kwa karibu sana. Mawazo yangu ni kuwa amani ya kweli ya Somalia haitapatikana London au popote pale nje ya Somalia. Wafadhili na wanaoihurumia Somalia watatoa chembe ya misaada na kuwaunga mkono, lakini Wasomali wenyewe ndio wanapaswa kutatua huu mgogoro.

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Mkuu inasemekana itakuwa ni international conference ya 20 kuhusu Somalia tokea mwaka 1991. Kwenye conferences zote hizo, hakuna walicho achieve. Many Somali watchers thought the previous conferences were just big, expensive talking shop and for Somali politicians to stay in expensive hotels in foreign countries while people at home carry on killing each other and starving to death.

Kuna uwezekano hii conference itakuwa the same kama zilizopita japokuwa ni ya siku moja tuu. UK inadai imefanya a lot of groundwork kabla ya hii conference, lakini bado sioni kama itakuwa na mafanikio wanayokusudia. Sidhani viongozi wan nchi 40 kukutana London kwa siku moja kutatatua matatizo ya Somalia. Ni kujaribu kuionyesha dunia kuwa they are doing something.

Kama alivyosema Waziri wa Mambo ya Nje wa Uingereza "We cannot turn Somalia around with one conference" japokuwa kama alisahau kuwa tayari kumeshafanyika conferences 19 huko nyuma. Nina wasiwasi kujihusisha kwa Uingengereza kwenye tatizo la Somalia inaweza kukuza tatizo. Somalia sio Libya.

Nasikia Turkey, which has stolen the limelight particularly in terms of humanitarian effectiveness inaandaa conference nyingine juu ya Somalia. Kwa hiyo hao wanaodhuria conference ya London, akiwepo rais wetu, watapaki tena mabegi yao ready for another grand meeting on Somalia in Istanbul.