Country Profile:  Somolia

Executive Summary
   
    Somalia is plagued with a hellish climate, causing turbulence among a populace that relies heavily on subsistence living. Recently, the worse drought in 60 years resulted in a catastrophic famine. This only compounded the social strife that arose when the state lost any sort of formal government structure in the early 1990s. Clans in the northern portion of Somalia united to form Somaliland and declared independence from Somalia; concurrently, the region just east of Somaliland formed the semi autonomous state of Somaliland. Characterized by terror groups such as alShabaab and rogue pirates in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, Somalia was significantly impeded in its attempts to organize the political chaos and secure diplomatic relations with foreign states.
Brief History

    Formally a European colony that changed hands between France, Britain, and Italy, Somalia gained its independence in 1960. Nine years later, a coup headed by Mohamed Siad Barre brought about an authoritarian socialist rule. By 1991, this regime collapsed when another rebel group, the United Somali Congress (USC), gained control of the capital city, Mogadishu. A fullblown civil war developed in the capital when the USC fragmented into rival, clan based factions, which brought about an extended period of political and social chaos. A series of interim governments were ultimately established by the early 2000s, leading to today’s parliamentary government.
Political Structure

  1. Political System: In 2004, an interim government was established called the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of the Somali Republic. The TFG was tasked with implementing a federated parliamentary republic. Within the TFG, the Transitional Federal Parliament (TFP) is the governing body that carries the responsibility of electing a president. The creation of the TFG was based on the Transitional Federal Charter (TFC), which outlined a five year mandate (which was extended an additional two years) leading to the establishment of a new Somali constitution and a transition to a representative government following national elections. This process ended in September 2012 with the appointment of 275 members to a new parliament that subsequently elected a new president.

  2. Political Conflicts: There has been ongoing antigovernment fighting in Mogadishu and violence and clashes throughout much of the country, particularly since May 2009. Insurgent activity and political tension remain high. In June 2009 the President of Somalia declared a state of emergency, following a period of intense fighting in and around the capital, Mogadishu.
Economic Structure

  1. Economic System: The economy of Somalia is largely informal. It is primarily agriculturally based, with livestock consisting of around 40% of GDP. However, on the production front, processing of agricultural goods has suffered as a result of the liquidation of essential machinery in the industrial sector. Somalia compensates for this deficiency through its lucrative telecommunication and money transfer services (in lieu of a formal banking sector), the later of which processes up to $1.6 billion worth of remittances annually.

  2. Economic Trends: Mogadishu, Somalia's capital city, it witnessing promising economic growth since the elimination of the militant group alShabaab’s presence from the city in August 2011. Their removal has allowed for the development of the city's first gas stations, supermarkets, and flights between Europe (IstanbulMogadishu) since the collapse of central authority in 1991. This economic growth has yet to expand outside of Mogadishu.

  3. Economic Resources: Exports include livestock, bananas, hides, fish, charcoal, and scrap metal
Social Structure

Religion:
  • Muslim: 10,092,128 adherents (99.95% of population)
  • Christian: 5,049 adherents (0.05% of population)
Churches:
  • Ethiopian Orthodox (1,400 members)
  • Catholic (116 members)
  • Other denominations (79 members)
Ethnicity:
  • Somali 85%
  • Bantu and other non-Somali 15% (including 30,000 Arabs)
Gender:
  • Overall male population: 5,063,001 (50.2%)
  • Overall female population: 5,022,637 (49.8%) 014 years: 44.5% (male 2,245,149/ female 2,246,512) 1564 years: 53.1% (male 2,723,214/ female 2,632,475)
  • 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 94,638/ female 143,650) (2012 est.)
Urbanization:
  • Urban population: 37% of total population (2010)
  • rate of urbanization: 4.1% annual rate of change (201015 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 32.8% (2006)
Operating Organizations

Political Groups: Numerous clan and subclan factions exist both in support and in opposition to the transitional government.
Terrorist: alShaabab
Allies and Enemies

Regional Allies: Ethiopia
Regional Enemies: N/A
Global Allies: U.N. sponsored government is allied with the international community
Global Enemies: United States (note: the U.S. engages with militant groups such as alShaabab and Somali pirates, not the Somali government)
Country Trajectory

    After more than two decades of disarray, the political climate of Somalia is finally stabilizing. It appears that the state is emerging as an entity that can implement effective strategies to improve living conditions and perhaps bring further peace to the wartorn region. Although alShabaab has largely been eliminated as a threat, pirate activity by Somali nationals is proving to be difficult to wholly eradicate. Additionally, the state is faced with a massive hunger crisis, the severity of which largely depends on the variables of weather and conflict. While droughts are not something the state can control, alShabaab had denied the existance of the famine and refused aid from Western organizations. The solidification of the new government in Mogadishu brings hope that new diplomatic relations will help to aid domestic crises such as hunger.
Current Events

  • Jan. 17th, 2013: Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recognized the government of Somalia in Mogadishu after more than 20 years of a diplomatic hiatus.

        http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2013/01/201311715639188977.html

  • Jan. 24th, 2013: The president of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, stated his satisfaction and hopefulness with being recognized diplomatically by the United States. He claimed his administration will strive toward fighting “three evils” that have the ability to prevent further progress in the state: murder, rape, and corruption.

        http://allafrica.com/stories/201301250735.html
Sources