THE OBSTACLES OF SOMALILAND DEVELOPMENT
 

It has been over twenty some years since Somaliland reclaimed its Independence. Although
a lot has been achieved since the past 20 years from ashes to present day democracy, yet
our country seems to lag real development in some of the major areas any country needs.
and that is the infrastructure such as roads, bridges, water systems, sufficient energy. I am
not naive and I know these projects need a lot of financing and money but what I am trying
to clarify in this article is the things that we can even do partially on our own are being
hindered by other forces within the society .

Choosing the free market system in Somaliland was a major step and it saved the country
from economic hardship. We created a thriving business community and this in turn made
the possibility of easy accessibility for commodities that was necessary for the rebuilding
of the nation. Food, construction material, transportation equipment, household goods and
clothing and much more became easily available in any city, town or village in Somaliland.
Although prices have been going up steadily for these commodities so it has been much
of the world. This free market is a good example when people are allowed to trade freely
with minimum government interference and with the right regulations and taxation. As a result
our country was rebuilt quickly from the utter destruction it suffered from the merciless regime of the Siyad Barre. ln less than ten years most of Somaliland was rebuilt.


Suffice to say all these good achievements are in vain if on the other hand the very society thatare so smart and achieved all these wonderful things are obstacles to the well being and the real developments of their country without being aware of the matter. May be our society are good performers on the individual level but not when on a collective bases.

in the recent weeks there has been a lot of talk about oil and gas exploration in Somaliland. While this is a good news for all Somalilanders I have real reservations and doubts how this is going tobe implemented. The root of my article is to shine a light on this matter. The government of Somaliland has the following obstacles in front of it and I dont know has it will address it.

1. Tribal claims and control of the land
2. Well armed tribal militia willing to fight government forces
3. Unwillingness of para military forces to use arms against their own citizens
4. Lack of credible banking and financial institutions.
5. Weak judicial system


Although Somialiland desperately needs the economic gains of such projects the undertakin g of this is a huge step which needs a calculated thinking and strategic planning. We dont need to bring somecoporation eager to exploit our resources if we are not ready for them and what can come after. I would like to know how the government is going to address the usual tribesmen who come running claimingthe land is theirs whenever a project comes up. We all know the cement factory of Berbera is not functioning until now. The traditional graz ing lands of the nomadic people has been taken over by individuals who turned it to private ranges and charge for money any one who tries to graze his animals.

Due to this Somalilands livestock shrank sicgnificantly over the years as people keep fleeing from the rural areas to cities. Every tribe in somaliland thinks the land and its resources are theirs insteadof belonging to the government which represents them. This mentality is a very dangerous one and it is the source of much of the conflicts we hear about. Our noble traditions of sharing the land whether for grazing livestock or farming is long gone and it has been destroyed vicious tribesmen who claim they are the leaders and poisoning the people with narrow and short sighted ideas. Much of Somaliland territories is occupied illegally by those people and the Somaliland government haven't done much about it and it is a huge problem.

Before we all jump to oil and gas development I think we should work on our house before it catches fire. We have a lot of work to do .

 

Abdulrashid Ali Hassab- caalam
Toronto, Canada