Attachments
Following the conclusion of the National Consultative Council meeting on 29 June, 2021, the international community congratulated Federal and Member State Government leaders for reaching agreements on the national election timetable, the role of the Technical Election Support Team and its expansion to include Federal Member State representatives, and promoting the participation of women candidates in the upcoming elections.
UNHCR continued to provide protection, assistance and solutions to persons of concern across the country, as well as to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Update on Achievements
Operational Context
Following a constructive three-day meeting of the National Consultative Council (NCC) attended by Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble and the Federal Member State leaders, important decisions were reached regarding the electoral timetable, the role of the Technical Election Support Team and its expansion to include Federal Member State representatives, and promoting the participation of women candidates in elections by reducing their registration fees in half. The progress reached at the NCC was commended by the International Community.
Also in June, the Government of Kenya (GoK) issued a statement announcing that it had reopened its airspace to all flights between Somalia and Kenya. According to the statement, the GoK expressed its commitment to remain a true partner for a peaceful and stable Somalia and indicated looking forward for the normalization of diplomatic and bilateral relations between the two countries. On 12 June, the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Somalia issued a statement announcing the restoration of diplomatic relations with Kenya and asked the GoK to reopen its Embassy in Mogadishu while undertaking to reciprocally reopen its Embassy in Nairobi. The FGS underlined that the resumption of full diplomatic relations between the two countries is a step in the right direction as well as a positive start to the commencement of bilateral discussions between the two countries. Diplomatic relations between the two countries had been suspended since December 2020 when the FGS alleged Kenyan interference in Somali’s internal affairs.
The security situation in the country remained volatile with regular attacks against military bases, as well as civilians. Access in some parts of the country was further challenged by floods.
The UNHCR-led Protection and Return Monitoring Network (PRMN), implemented in partnership with NRC, has reported 477,000 internal displacements in 2021 as of the end of June. Among these, 42,000 new internal displacements took place in the month of June, among which 29,000 were triggered by conflict or insecurity while 10,000 were related to drought and loss of livelihood.