New Deal: View from Somalia

Ibrahim Eid is a both a farmer and a pastoralist as well as being chairman of his local village in south central Somalia. He's very concerned about the current drought, which is the worst he's ever seen. This problem is made worse by the large number of displaced people living in the area, which suffers from high unemployment. Ibrahim knows families who haven't had a meal for two nights. He works alongside his community and local authorities to improve local security, but doesn't see any assistance from the Federal Government. He's also concerned about their lack of teachers and health workers in his area. His community has no money for fuel to operate the water tanks and so they have to use the nearby river. 

The Somali New Deal, created in 2013, was and is intended to “to create a better future for all Somali people’, like Ibrahim, and address the challenges they face. The aim is to do this by means of a dialogue that promotes political reconciliation and establishes peace, security, justice and sustainable development.

One year on, as New Deal donors and the Somalia government prepare to meet in Copenhagen to reflect and take stock of progress, World Vision, along with fellow NGO Saferworld, have come together to release a report. The report assesses the progress of the New Deal and brings to the table for the first time the perspectives of Somali community and civil society members.

The perspectives of ordinary Somalis about whether the New Deal was relevant to their everyday lives were sought.  They highlighted a number of gaps in the New Deal including the need for greater emphasis on social reconciliation; strengthening and re-establishing policing services; the need to improve traditional dispute resolution mechanisms; and the provision of quality basic services.

World Vision Somalia’s Senior Policy & Strategic Engagement Manager Jennifer Jalovec, who will be attending the Copenhagen meeting as an observer, sees the gathering as a  turning point. ‘If the New Deal continues to lack relevance to the day to day needs and priorities of the Somali people, there's a real risk that when it comes to implementation, the projects will do more harm than good' she said.

The report title: 'Strengthening from the bottom up' is in recognition of the fact that the Somali people and their views are at the centre of the New Deal talks at Copenhagen. “ They should not be left on the sidelines’, says Jalovec.

 ‘Action now’ says Jalovec, ‘by all authorities in Somalia and Somaliland, and the international community, will maximise the potential of New Deal processes to effect positive, sustainable and meaningful change’.

For an executive summary of the report, click here. Full report is available to download here.