I visited Hargeisa, Somaliland in the period 23 and 26-29 October and Garowe, Puntland 24 -26 October and discussed outstanding JNA issues with the respective authorities. A consultant Joakim Gundel accompanied me on the mission. In Hargeisa Ambassador Mohamed Hassan and Safia Jama, both of UNDP, participated in the meetings.
1. HARGEISA
1.1 JNA Discussions.
Back in August the Somaliland authorities approved the JNA Concept Note and gave the green light to the JNA team to proceed with the exercise. The Somaliland Minister of Planning reversed this position by his letter dated, 8 October in which he insisted that unless the reservations they had raised over the Concept Note were addressed satisfactorily, they would not move forward with the JNA process. In missions to Hargeisa, Mr. El-Balla Hagona UNDP Country Representative and Max Gaylard Resident Coordinator/Humanitarian Coordinator, took up the JNA issues with the President of Somaliland, and concerned Ministers who were positively inclined to the JNA. I met the Minister of Planning on 23 October in the company of Ambassador Mohamed Hassan and Joakim Gundel (JNA). I made a comprehensive presentation to him on the benefits of JNA to Somaliland and ensured him that the exercise being non-political did not compromise the status, legitimacy and authority of Somaliland. I urged the Somaliland authorities to put the Concept Note aside and embark with us on the practical implementation of the JNA exercise. The Minister of Planning insisted that the HE President of Somaliland had directed him to state categorically that unless a new and separate Concept Note was prepared for Somaliland, they would not move forward with the JNA.
At that stage we decided to raise the JNA stakes higher beyond the Minister of Planning to the Presidency. I sent the attached letter dated 25 October to the President explaining the JNA exercise, emphasizing it’s importance, value and benefit to the people of Somaliland and assuring him that the process being a purely technical exercise, did not compromise the status, legitimacy and authority of Somaliland. The President convened a cabinet meeting on this subject on 27 October. I understand he expressed the view that the Concept Note was written more for TFG then Somaliland but that he did not direct the Minister of Planning to reject the JNA. He directed ten Ministers (see list) to meet with me and submit a consensus recommendations to him on Somaliland’s engagement with the process.
The previous evening Max, and I met with the two Opposition Leaders. We briefed them fully on the JNA, observing that some of resistance we were encountering with the Minister of Planning may have been in anticipation of the Opposition rejecting the JNA. The Leaders assured us of their full support for the JNA but expressed the views that the process needed to be handled carefully so as not to create the impression that Somaliland had compromised it’s sovereignty. They appealed to us to find an acceptable modality for engaging Somaliland in the process. They expressed unhappiness with Rome as the venue of the Donor Conference and wanted to be assured that in numerical terms, their technical teams, should be at par with the Somalia representatives. We impressed upon them the importance of accepting the JNA and working closely with us on the exercise. We assured the Opposition Leaders that the issue of the venue for the Donor Conference was immaterial because the same Donors would be the ones meeting and deciding on assistance in support of the Somali RDP at any other venue. We emphasized that technical excellence and inclusive Somali participation and confidence in the process would ensure Donor support.
I met with all the ten Ministers except the Minister of health, on 27 October for over three hours. Ambassador Mohamed Hassan attended the meeting. The meeting was tough and dwelt on the issues of legitimacy, sovereignty, and independence, as well as the development stage of Somaliland and why they felt a separate Concept Note and exercise should have been undertaken for Somaliland.
They expressed unhappiness with the prospect of their technical team being lumped together with the Somalia participants in the Inception Workshop planned for mid-November in Nairobi. They also criticized the decision to hold the Somali Donor Conference in Rome Italy which they considered as hostile territory to Somaliland.
I took pains to allay the fears of the Ministers, re-assuring them that they had the opportunity of a lifetime to re-engage for the first time with the International Community and ensure the massive investment of funding and technical know-how required to move Somaliland from recovery to reconstruction and development. Then followed a heated debate in Somali with most ministers favouring the JNA for the JNA, but the Minister of Planning sticking to his position of not accepting the Concept Note. At the end of the meeting the Minister of Foreign Affairs summed up the conclusions as follows:
“We are unhappy with the Concept Note and will not accept it but we are prepared to proceed with the technical aspects of the JNA
All references to us and our representative in the Inception Workshop and JNA exercise must carry the name of Somaliland.
We will be in charge of the JNA assessment, analysis, programming and planning of RDP in Somaliland
We will be responsible and accountable for the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the Somaliland segment of the RDP.
We will convey Somaliland’s position on the JNA to you in writing giving the names of the Somaliland JNA Coordinator and Technical Counterparts”.
I reaffirmed to the meeting that I did not see any disagreements with their position, since they were the very ones I had articulated in my letter to the President. I urged the Ministers to respond promptly to us in writing and at the same time name their JNA Coordinator and six Technical Counterparts. Before leaving Hargeisa on 29 October, I verified with most of the Ministers who confirmed that they and the President were fully in support of the JNA and that the President would soon be writing to me.
If we have achieved something for the JNA in Somaliland it is that we have raised the stakes higher than the Minister of Planning who has so far obstructed progress, to the President himself and nine key Ministers and the two Opposition Leaders who all support the JNA. I am hopeful Somaliland will not walk away from the JNA.
1.2 John Drysdel: Cadastral Services.
I used the opportunity of my extended stay in Hargeisa to meet with Mr. John Drysdel a British Somaliland citizen with long history of association with Somalia since the British Colonial period. His NGO –Cadastral Services, working out of Gabile, near Hargeisa has surveyed and produced maps for over 7,000 terms to ensure Title Deeds. UNDP ( Paul Simkin) has been in contact with him to secure his interest to support the Land and Property Sub-Cluster of Cluster1. I was impressed with his work and his profound knowledge of Somaliland and Somalia and its people. He agreed to participate in the JNA in an advisory capacity.
2. GAROWE
2.1 JNA Discussions
I met with the Puntland Minister of Planning and International Cooperation and his Puntland Five-year Development Plan (FYDP) team. Joakim Gundel (consultant) and Rahama Mohammed (UNDP) attended the meeting. I briefed the meeting on JNA concept, process and outcome and emphasized the substantive participation by the Puntland authorities in the exercise, urging them to select and name their JNA Coordinator and six technical counterparts urgently. A lively discussion followed. The main issues that emerged from the meeting were:
* Fair and equitable treatment of the needs of citizens of Sol and Sanag regions.
* Fairness in the selection of the prominent Somali experts and TFG Technical Counterparts
* Remuneration for the Puntland Technical counterparts.
The Minister promised to forward the names of their JNA Coordinator and Technical Counterpart experts soon. While respecting Puntland’s initiative in launching the preparation of their FYDP, I advised that to minimize duplication and avoid waste of human resources, the plan be delayed so that the JNA assessment exercise leads it off and that the segment of Puntland in the final RDP could form the basis of its PFYP. In subsequent discussion, it transpired that the Minister wanted the PFYP to go forward and be completed by November/December and launched in a Donor Conference in December. In his view the plan would then feed into the JNA. The plan is being supported by UNDP and now UNICEF (Joakim Gundel). It remains to be seen how the PFYP will feed into and harmonize with the JNA.
2.2. JNA Consultation
The JNA team was able to meet the persistent calls of the Puntland authorities for a workshop by holding a Consultation attended by 56 Participants drawn from the government and UN agencies, the academia and civil society in Garowe on 25 October. The consultation was opened at the new premises of the Puntland Development and Research Centre (PDRC) by Hon. Mohamed Faroole, Puntland Minister of Planning and International Cooperation. The Ministers of Local Government and Education participated in the consultation. Max Gaylard gave an opening remark. Attached is the agenda of the consultation. A full report on the consultation is being prepared but overall, it stimulated a very lively, participatory and productive discussion. Major issues that came out of the consultation included:
* Special attention by JNA to needs of the citizens of the Sol and Sanag to ensure their interests do not fall between the cracks
* A fair and equitable representation and participation of all Somalis in the JNA process
* Remuneration for Somalis participating in the JNA
* Failure of donors to support the TFG by not providing promised funding to build public institutions.
* Call on UNPOS to give greater support to TFG
* Puntland authorities intended their plan for completing and launching their FYDP in a donor conference by early November/December.
3.3 Meeting with Puntland Development and Research Center (PDRC)
The Director Dr. A.A. Osman Shuuke being away on mission, I met with the top staff of PDRC. Joakim Gundel, consultant attended the meeting which focused on exploring areas in which PDRC, an affiliate of WSP could participate in the JNA especially at the Puntland level. We agreed that within the Cross-Cutting Cluster of Peace-Building Reconciliation led by WSP, PDRC would support the Puntland JNA technical team in the areas of:
* Community and CBOs participation in the JNA process
* Development of Peace Building and Reconciliation Strategies for JNA
* Planning and participating in preparing for the Zonal workshops for Puntland and adjoining zones.
Nairobi 3 November 05
DSB/SM
Intro to the JNA
In accordance with the Declaration of Principles and, signed by the Prime Minister of the Somali Transitional Federal Government, Ali Mohamed Gedi and the Representative of the UN Secretary-General, Ambassador Winston Tubman in February 2005, it was agreed under section IV, that immediate preparations for a longer term Reconstruction and Development Programme would commence. Subsequent to this the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia and the International Community requested the United Nations Development Group (UNDG) and the World Bank (WB) to co-lead, in partnership with Somali counterparts, and prepare for a Somali Joint Needs Assessment (JNA) which would lead to a Reconstruction and Development Programme in preparation for a donor’s conference to be held in Rome and co-hosted by Sweden and Italy.