Politics of Somalia
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 Somalia portal |
The politics of Somalia takes place in a framework of federal parliamentary representative democratic republic. According to the Constitution of Somalia, the President of Somalia is head of state, and Prime Minister as head of government who is appointed by the President with the parliament's approval.[1]
The country has a bicameral legislature, which consists of the Senate (upper house) and the National Assembly of Somalia (lower house). Together, they make up the Federal Parliament of Somalia.[2] in 2012 The Federal Parliament of Somalia was concurrently inaugurated, ushering in the Federal Government of Somalia, the first permanent central government in the country since the start of the civil war.[3]
With a new constitution and a new parliament representing diverse parties and factions, Somalia's political structure subsequently showed signs of stabilization.[4][5]
Political history
Transitional Federal Institutions
The early 2000s saw the creation of fledgling interim federal administrations. The Transitional National Government (TNG) was established in 2000 followed by the formation of its successor the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in 2004, which reestablished national institutions such as the Military of Somalia.[6]
The Transitional Federal Government (TFG) was the internationally recognised government of Somalia until 20 August 2012, when its tenure officially ended.[3] It was established as one of the Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs) of government as defined in the Transitional Federal Charter (TFC) adopted in November 2004 by the Transitional Federal Parliament (TFP).
The Transitional Federal Government officially comprised the executive branch of government, with the TFP serving as the legislative branch. The government was headed by the President of Somalia, to whom the cabinet reported through the Prime Minister. However, it was also used as a general term to refer to all three branches collectively.
Post-transition Roadmap
As part of the official "Roadmap for the End of Transition", a political process which provides clear benchmarks leading toward the establishment of permanent democratic institutions in Somalia by late August 2012,[4] Somali government officials met in the northeastern town of Garowe in February 2012 to discuss post-transition arrangements. After extensive deliberations attended by regional actors and international observers, the conference ended in a signed agreement between TFG President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, Speaker of Parliament Sharif Adan Sharif Hassan, Puntland President Abdirahman Mohamed Farole, Galmudug President Mohamed Ahmed Alim and Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama'a representative Khalif Abdulkadir Noor stipulating that: a) a new 225 member bicameral parliament would be formed, consisting of an upper house seating 54 Senators as well as a lower house; b) 30% of the National Constituent Assembly (NCA) is earmarked for women; c) the President is to be appointed via a constitutional election; and d) the Prime Minister is selected by the President and he/she then names his/her Cabinet.[7][8] On June 23, 2012, the Somali federal and regional leaders met again and approved a draft constitution after several days of deliberation.[9] The National Constituent Assembly overwhelmingly passed the new constitution on August 1, with 96% of the 645 delegates present voting for it, 2% against it, and 2% abstaining.[10][11] To come into effect, it must be ratified by the new parliament.[12]
Concurrent with the end of the TFG's interim mandate on August 20, 2012, the Federal Parliament of Somalia was inaugurated, ushering in the Federal Government of Somalia, the first permanent central government in the country since the start of the civil war.[3] On September 10, 2012, parliament also elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as the new President of Somalia.[13]
Government
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| Hassan Sheikh President |
Omar Abdirashid Prime Minister |
Article 1 of the Somali Constitution states[14]Somalia is a federal, sovereign, and democratic republic founded on inclusive representation of the people, a multiparty system and social justice.
The President is elected by the Parliament. He or she serves as the head of state and chooses the Prime Minister, who serves as the head of government and leads the Council of Ministers. According to Article 97 of the constitution, most executive powers of the Somali government are vested in the Council of Ministers.[15] The incumbent President of Somalia is Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.[13] Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke is the national Prime Minister.[16]
As the head of state, the President of the Republic represents the unity of the nation and has many of the duties,the President determines the basic direction of Somalia's domestic and foreign policy and represents the state within the country and in foreign affairs. The president appoints and recalls Somalia's ambassadors upon consultation with the legislature, accepts the credentials and letters of recall of foreign representatives, conducts international talks, and signs international treaties. The president is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
Executive branch
| Office | Name | Party | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| President | Hassan Sheikh Mohamud | Peace and Development Party | 10 September 2012 |
| Prime Minister | Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke | Independent | 24 December 2014 |
Legislative branch
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The Federal Parliament of Somalia is the national parliament of Somalia. Formed in August 2012, it is based in the capital Mogadishu and is bicameral, consisting of an upper house and a lower house.
The Federal Parliament of Somalia elects the President and has the authority to pass and veto laws.[14] and consists of a 275-seat lower house as well as an upper house capped at 54 representatives.[17] The current Members of parliament were selected by a Technical Selection Committee, which was tasked with vetting potential legislators that were in turn nominated by a National Constituent Assembly consisting of elders.[18] The current Speaker of the Federal Parliament is Mohamed Osman Jawari.[19]
Judicial branch
the Constitution states that the judiciary is independent of the legislative and executive branches of government whilst fulfilling its judicial functions.Members of the judiciary shall be subject only to the law.[14]
The Somali judicial system is based on Islamic law, Judicial authority of the Federal Republic is vested in the courts. The judiciary is independent of the legislative and executive branches of government whilst fulfilling its judicial functions. It can declare statutes as null and void if they are in violation of the Federal Constitution.
The national court structure consists of:
- The Constitutional Court
- The Federal Government level courts
- The Federal Member State level courts
A nine-member Judicial Service Commission appoints any Federal tier member of the judiciary. It also selects and presents potential Constitutional Court judges to the House of the People of the Federal Parliament for approval. If endorsed, the President appoints the candidate as a judge of the Constitutional Court. The five-member Constitutional Court adjudicates issues pertaining to the constitution, in addition to various Federal and sub-national matters.[14]
The Constitutional Court is composed of 5 judges, The Judicial Service Commission shall nominate as judge of the Constitutional Court only persons of high integrity, with appropriate qualifications in law and Shari’a, and who is highly competent in Constitutional matters, and who are of high moral character. Nominees are then presented to the House of the People of the Federal Parliament for approval. If endorsed, the President appoints the candidate as a judge of the Constitutional Court. The Chief Judge and Deputy Chief Judge are later chosen by the Constitutional Court judges from within their membership ranks.[14]
Political parties and elections
Administrative divisions
Somalia is officially divided into eighteen regions (plural gobollada; singular gobol), which in turn are subdivided into districts. The regions are:[6]
Column-generating template families
The templates listed here are not interchangeable. For example, using {{col-float}} with {{col-end}} instead of {{col-float-end}} would leave a <div>...</div> open, potentially harming any subsequent formatting.
| Type | Family | Handles wiki
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| Float | "col-float" | Yes | Yes | {{col-float}} | {{col-float-break}} | {{col-float-end}} |
| "columns-start" | Yes | Yes | {{columns-start}} | {{column}} | {{columns-end}} | |
| Columns | "div col" | Yes | Yes | {{div col}} | – | {{div col end}} |
| "columns-list" | No | Yes | {{columns-list}} (wraps div col) | – | – | |
| Flexbox | "flex columns" | No | Yes | {{flex columns}} | – | – |
| Table | "col" | Yes | No | {{col-begin}}, {{col-begin-fixed}} or {{col-begin-small}} |
{{col-break}} or {{col-2}} .. {{col-5}} |
{{col-end}} |
{| | || |- |} used to create tables? If not, special templates that produce these elements (such as {{(!}}, {{!}}, {{!!}}, {{!-}}, {{!)}})—or HTML tags (<table>...</table>, <tr>...</tr>, etc.)—need to be used instead.International organization participation
Somalia is a member of:
ACP AfDB AFESD AL AMF CAEU ECA FAO G-77 IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS IGAD ILO IMF IMO Intelsat Interpol IOC IOM (observer) ITU NAM OAU OIC UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UPU WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WTrO (observer)
See also
- Constitution of Somalia
- List of Presidents of Somalia
- List of Prime Ministers of Somalia
- List of political parties in Somalia
- Federal Parliament of Somalia
- History of Somalia
References
- ^ Antonios Kouroutakis Note on the Provisional Constitution of the Federal Republic of Somalia http://www.iconnectblog.com/2013/09/note-on-the-provisional-constitution-of-somalia/
- ^ "Somalia swears in historic new parliament". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
- ^ a b c "Somalia: UN Envoy Says Inauguration of New Parliament in Somalia 'Historic Moment'". Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. 21 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
- ^ a b Ahmed, Muddassar (8 August 2012). "Somalia rising after two decades of civil war and unrest". Al Arabiya. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
- ^ Mulupi, Dinfin. "Mogadishu: East Africa's newest business destination?". Retrieved 26 June 2012.
- ^ a b Central Intelligence Agency (2011). "Somalia". The World Factbook. Langley, Virginia: Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
- ^ Somalia: Garowe conference comes to a close
- ^ Second Garowe Conference Concludes
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Aassladcwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Somalia's newly-endorsed constitution widely hailed". Xinhua. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ^ "Somalia adopts a constitution, amidst insecurity". Garowe Online. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
- ^ "Somali leaders back new constitution". BBC. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ^ a b "Somali lawmakers elect Mohamud as next president". Reuters. Retrieved 10 September 2012.
- ^ a b c d e "The Federal Republic of Somalia - Provisional Constitution" (PDF). Retrieved 13 March 2013.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Gttsdpcwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "PM Sharma'arke officially takes office". Goobjoog. 25 December 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ^ "Somalia swears in historic new parliament". Al Jazeera. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
- ^ Somalia: List of new parliamentarians leaked
- ^ "Somali Parliament Elects Speaker for New Gov't". Voice of America. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
External links
- BBC Country Profile for Somalia
- report about Somalian Economy (perhaps dated)