He argues that this will whet the appetite of other countries to seize the wealth of Somalia. Each regional administration seeks to secure its own political and economic interests, thus igniting an ongoing political conflict between the federal government and its states.įurthermore, Abtidoon concludes that the persistence of the security crisis in the country opens the door for foreign intervention by regional and international players under the pretext of reducing the impact of security chaos in the Horn of Africa. He adds that this would subject the country's political action to the tribe's political power, which takes control of the state's influence and funds and undermines the modernisation project in Somalia.Įlaborating on the future of Somalia, the author predicts the political divide will continue, attributes this to the administrative regimes which he describes as lacking a consolidated political vision. The author blames this on the wealth distribution system and the current tribal-based quotas and portfolios. All of this will continue to hinder any chance for progress towards tangible political breakthrough on the ground. According to the author, this is attributed to regional and international policies that seek to divide the country into federal states beyond the control of the federal government.Ībtidoon goes on to say that the administrative divisions seen by Somalia are caused by the political conditions as well as the tribal and political quotas. Factors of partition into fragile and weak entities, however, were and remain stronger than efforts for unity.
He states that Somalia, as a nation with one ethnicity one language and one religion, possesses the seeds of strength and the potential for unity. The author concludes the book by presenting a number of facts. The third chapter, “The Federal Experience in Somalia: Opportunities and Challenges,” deals with a number of issues that – according to Abtidoon – undermine the likelihood a federal system will be implement in Somalia in light of the challenges of the tribal mosaic that is divided between the federal system on one hand and unity and centralisation on the other. The author questions whether federalism will solve Somalia's dilemma or mark the beginning of disintegration. In the second chapter, “The Federal Project in Somalia: From the Legacy of Colonisers to Neighbours,” the author discusses the draft federal system in Somalia by exploring the role Western colonisation played in the disruption of the country as well as the roles of regional players (such as Ethiopia and Kenya) in imposing this system through conferences of reconciliation between Somali factions.
This chapter also looks into the factors that led to the fall of the central state of Somalia in the early 1990s. In the first chapter, “The Political System in Somalia: From the Fall of the State to Creative Chaos,” Abtidoon elaborates on the political situation in Somalia from 1943 to 1960 to provide a better understanding of the current political accumulations and highlight the short-term civilian governments that were followed by a two-decade rule by military regimes. He moves on to highlight the experience of federalism in Arab countries in situations similar to that of Somalia such as Yemen, Iraq and Sudan. The author begins with a theoretical introduction in which he addresses the concepts associated with federalism as well as the central and confederal state. Abtidoon used various approaches to present his thesis, including:ġ) The historical approach to portray and contextualise what has happened in recent decadesĢ) The analytical-descriptive approach to review the agendas, objectives and backgrounds of regional powersģ) The content analysis approach to examine the narratives that frame the different literature addressing this topic It sheds light on the impact of federalism on Somalia's present and future and as an alternative for unity, rendering the book particularly valuable.įederalism in Somalia consists of a theoretical introduction and three chapters addressing the background of Somalia's partition through the federal system. Al Jazeera Centre for Studies (AJCS) published a new book this month entitled Federalism in Somalia: Aspirations of Partition and Challenges to Unity by Shafei Abtidoon.
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