Somalia: Humanitarian Coordinator calls for immediate re-engagement in Mogadishu

Nairobi, 17 January, 2007 - The international aid community must take immediate advantage of the window of opportunity that now exists in Somalia by substantially re-engaging in the capital, according to the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Eric Laroche, following two high-level UN missions to Mogadishu in the last week.

Given the recent events in South/Central Somalia and the ongoing relocation of the Transitional Federal Institutions from Baidoa to Mogadishu, the population has high expectations for reconciliation, security and a resumption of basic social services, such as education and health. 'The people are war-weary after more than fifteen years of conflict, instability and insecurity,' said Laroche 'We need to resume as soon as possible high-impact projects in the capital that support stabilisation and make a visible difference in peoples' lives.'

'If we don't act quickly, though,' Laroche added, 'this opportunity may pass. The power vacuum could spread and we may see a situation developing in Somalia in which the people once again find themselves living in a lawless society. It's imperative that we act now, so as not to lose the momentum for reconciliation that currently exists in Somalia.'

Following consultations with TFG authorities and civil society in Mogadishu, the UN will prioritise activities related to the training of police, the demobilisation and reintegration of militias, the relocation of some key institutions, the re-establishment of representative local authorities, and the rehabilitation and management of the harbor and the airport.

Other priorities agreed upon are the provision of urgently needed basic social services, especially a back-to-school campaign; relocation of and assistance to IDPs; and employment and livelihoods recovery. Interventions in all of the above areas will not only improve lives but can help to bolster stability and reconciliation within Somalia.

The aid community has learned from the past in Somalia and is currently developing a code of conduct which aims to promote behaviours in line with basic humanitarian principles in order to avoid fuelling the re-establishment of the system of coercion and violence perpetrated in the past by the war lords.

For more information please contact:
Molly McCloskey mccloskeym@un.org or Rita Maingi maingir@un.org - OCHA Somalia
Tel: (+254) 020 3754150-5
Fax: (+254) 020 3754156