Brussels, 24/02/2016 (Agence Europe) - During a high level meeting on Somalia on Wednesday 24 February, European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica said consolidation of political progress in Somalia would be crucial in enabling the renewal of the New Deal for Somalia beyond 2016.
Mimica was representing the European Union at the third and final ministerial meeting of the partnership forum for Somalia - which was jointly organised by the Somali government, the United Nations and Turkey as part of the international New Deal for Somalia concluded in December 2013 between Somalia and the international community.
Saying that a short time ago Somalia was a failed state, Mimica underlined “the remarkable success” achieved since 2013, “thanks to the enormous joint efforts first and foremost from Somalia, supported by the international community - notably the EU”. He stated that the EU supported a renewed partnership, while preserving the essential elements of the New Deal (see EUROPE 11490).
“For the consolidation of Somalia's political progress, it is essential to succeed in the electoral process this year and to complete the country's 'federalism map'”, Mimica said, calling for the inclusion of all actors and for the swift approval of the constitutional court. “I urge the regional leaders, Parliament and civil society to work relentlessly to translate their commitment to action. All these efforts should provide the catalyst for Somalia finally to move towards universal elections in 2020”, he said.
Mimica also stated that security is a pre-requisite for sustainable state building. He called on Somalia to make the fight against al-Shabab a priority, and he called on the government to ensure its security forces were paid, as well as to ensure the transparency, responsibility and civil monitoring of the security budget. Civil society should step up its efforts to help the Somali state fight against al-Shabab, he said.
With the EU being the top supporter of the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), Mimica called on the other international partners to make their contribution also. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)