Long term strategy to improve access to employment for different marginalized groups in Somaliland

By Goth Mohamed Goth

Khayraat Development Association is well known for initiating innovative self-help projects with the purpose of preparing the women for job market with the necessary skills that empower them with life planning skills and knowledge of positive planning for starting Business Ventures

Khayraat Development Association vocational education and training Project coordinator Mrs. Amina Farah Carshe speaking during the graduation ceremony for 100 young women who had completed the capacity building training said, “The project has mainly benefited young women from all regions of the country and that the organization has helped youth to set up small scale businesses so as to enhance employment.

Madam Amina said, “an increased number of young women are currently participating in capacity building training activities and improving on their capacity building through mainstreaming sustainable training skills in various programs which will enable them to start viable income generations projects  .

Learning a new trade is one step closer to finding a job to make a living in Somaliland’s. With high unemployment rates and limited chances of opening doors to the job market, many young people mainly women chances of getting employed is low and are usually stuck in absolute poverty.

“It is anticipated that by the end of the project period, there will be realization of positive living and reduced levels of dependency among young women in project Regions and successful graduates received a financial grant and the tool related to their new trade, to help them increase their chances of future employment ”, she said.

 ILO and IIDA Women Development organization obtained the necessary funds from EU for the training of 400 young women in capacity building vital for starting viable income generations projects through capacity building training was facilitated by Khayraat Development Association support to vocational skills trainings is part of a longer term strategy to improve access to employment for different marginalized groups in Somaliland.

A) Objectives of the Workshop

i. Improving skills of women in small business

ii. Enhancing the information sharing among the women in small business

iii. Introduce basic principle of good business management in a simple and practical way

iv. Improve your business aims to make small businesses more viable, and so contribute to the creation of more job

KDA profile

Khayraad Development Association (KDA)

Six Regional Women Associations

Profile

A )As  the need for Somaliland women development became necessary, Khayraat a local multipurpose association has taken the burden to intervene and sought possible productive solutions on the issue.

The immediate target objective was to create professional women associations in all regions of Somaliland and to open representative branches. In mid of 2009, KDA organized and shared ideas with the representatives of the associations to structure their bylaws and formation of one common umbrella named Somaliland Women Development Agenda (SOWDA) funded by COSPE an International Italian Organization residing Nairobi. KDA with support of COSPE coordinated 60 women from different sectors in all regions. SOWDA under Khayraad Development Association (KDA) will compile all informational data on the development and welfare issues of the women they are serving on the basis of a universally adopted system of informational data.

The umbrella with the help of KDA will then provide useful informational data on the various issues and areas, programs and topics of great interest to their associations where as prioritizing them under their participation it would be easy to perform essential feasibility study of real needs of Somaliland women in all its phases whether education, trainings, capacity building, viable income generations projects and other essential assistance demanded in all possible means. According tour experience in these issues this shall be the most rapid way for immediate intervention and real effective, secured action.

In all the talk about tackling the economic crisis, Somaliland Government Authorities are missing one critical and fundamental factor: the centrality of investing in women entrepreneurs and women profession lists. It is essential for both short-term economic recovery and long-term economic growth in Somaliland. It also holds the potential to catalyze a lasting shift in women’s political participation and leadership. Since small businesses form the backbone of every economy in everywhere, the fact that in here women own more tiresome businesses not more than feeding families, this indicates that international donors and policy makers need to put women center-stage as they tackle the economic crisis.

Problem Statement

•Difficult access to the financial support (loan or grants)

•Lack of internal and external financial support towards development of businesswomen development

•Lack of development advice system

•Poor co-ordination among the key actors involved of women development

•Poor information on the success stories of women in business and working women

•Lack of technical skills and knowledge to create sustainable businesses and professional associations

•Business women involvements are not mentioned on Somaliland national plan.

Therefore, with the help of International donors, we would like to empower Somaliland women to promote and encourage them

Goals

1. Seek and allocate financial support for all development schemes for women.

2. To provide appropriate training and education for both the leadership and the association members.

3. Educate young girls to cope the world they live in

4.  Create income generations projects for the association in order to minimize dependency on external funds.

5. To ensure security and the success of women

Activities

1.Prepare a full study

2. Allocate funds for the project step by step as possible

3. Construct the centers furnish it and equip it fully

To provide appropriate training and education for both the leadership and the association members

Make full feasibility study

•             Pinpoint suitable income generation projects

•             Provide seeds capital for each group who have finished training

•             For sustainability create soft loan opportunities available

•             Search funds for Associations major schemes (Small scale/Medium)

•             Health issue awareness

Overall Strategic Goal

Realize development and welfare of Somaliland Women in all aspects of life with in the coming five years.

Activities

1.Make premises for training of the members in all regions.

2 .Create the essential leader ship and other human resource

3. Seek and allocate financial support for all development schemes

Workshop for the Formation of Women Association Held at Mansoor Hotel

Woman selling assorted grains of local production

Women livestock trader checking sheep in Hargesia market

Fish sellers in the fish shop

A young woman selling local raw salt,

All these women having vendor kind businesses get their income in harsh ways. They get up 5A.M and go home at 6PM without eating well and lack of toilets. Their income is just to feed their kids and sometime they loose money not having good sales some of the days or not knowing how to make good book keeping. In Somaliland women are the breadwinners for their families and for this sake the support of the donors and care of the government is greatly missing. Therefore, Khayraad Development Association is ready to support these women in the ground if we get the fund from the Donors. KDA is already made an assessment well and organized some regional associations and have the experts to do so. KDA chair is a businesswoman having Master Degree in International Trade from George Mason University in Virginia, U.S.A.      

 Fiberglass boats and water tanks making business owned by a one of the country’s woman Entrepreneur

Dahabshil International Group is honored to be part of the Muslim News Awards for Excellence 2014 which took place last night at Grosvenor House, London. The Muslim News is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and the awards are an important celebration of Muslim talent and the contribution of the Muslim community to British Society.

In 2013, Dahabshiil was honoured to be the recipient of the Excellence for Enterprise award for its vital role in fostering social development and increasing financial stability in developing countries through remittance finance.

Last night, Mr Abdirashid Duale, CEO of the Dahabshiil Group, was proud to present the Fazlur Rahman Khan Award for Excellence in Engineering, Science and Technology to Dr Farid Khan for his outstanding contribution to technological innovation in the field of human health in the UK and the Developing World.

Mr Duale said, “I am extremely proud and honored to be part of the Muslim News Awards for Excellence. The awards are an important way to celebrate success and recognise the contribution of Muslims from all walks of life to British Society.

Dahabshiil has in the past been recognised for the contribution to the communities that we serve and for supporting increased financial stability in Somalia. These principles remain at the heart of our business.

I was pleased to have the opportunity last night to raise the issues facing the Somali remittance industry directly with the Prime Minister himself and would like to thank the UK government for their ongoing commitment to find a solution which enables a safe and transparent remittance corridor to remain open with Somalia. This is vital service for the Muslim community in the UK and overseas.

I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate Mo Farah on winning the Faezeh Hashemi Award for Excellence in Sport and to thank him for his continued support of Dahabshiil and the Save Remittance Giving campaign.”

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The Peace Gardens came alive with singing, dancing, drumming and flag-waving as a motion tabled by Labour Coun Mohammad Maroof was passed by full council.

The historic move means Sheffield is the first local authority in the UK to recognise Somaliland as a sovereign state.

Coun Mahmood’s motion stated: “This council believes recognition will help to bring about stability in Somaliland. This council calls upon the Government to recognise Somaliland as an independent state and to encourage other governments around the world to do the same.”

Many men from Somaliland came to Sheffield after WW2 to work in steelworks.

Somaliland is in northwestern Somalia. It voted for independence in 1991 and has had democratically elected government since.

Source: The Star

By Goth Mohamed Goth

The Somaliland Minister of Interior and the head of the police force Brigadier General Abdullah Iman Fadal have on behalf of the government of Somaliland signed joint security cooperation with the government of neighboring Djibouti.

The Inferior Minister briefing the press said, “The aim of the discussions is to come up with shared ideas needed to identify ways to enhance future counterterrorism efforts and cooperation in the region and create a lasting dialogue between in order to achieve joint collective strategic counterterrorism efforts.

Hon Mohamed Ali Waran cade said the talks with Djiboutian counterparts focused on how we would jointly improve our counter terrorism capabilities such as identifying or sharing Intel on terror groups and most importantly to disrupt threats. 

Since both nations citizens commute to and fro through the shared borders on a daily basis we must put in place the necessary measures to be used at land/sea/air border crossings to ensure that persons entering/leaving Somaliland pass through robust security and immigration checks, allowing both Djiboutian and Somaliland authorities to identify and disrupt threats which understanding of the common threat across the borders.  

Somaliland officials were later given a tour of the Djiboutian police command center whereby they had a chance to observe ongoing anti-riot police demo trainings.

SomalilandPress.com

By Goth Mohamed Goth

Hargeisa-The ruling party KULMIYE executive committee has today has announced that they have solved one of the hurdles that was blamed for the numerous postponement of the third ruling party convention which is said to have being caused by an impasse among party delegates on how to award delegates party positions by which one of the camps insisted it should be awarded through regional representation while the opposing side insisted it should be through tribal quotas and which seems to have been the only viable alternative is to  increase  the number of delegates taking part in the convention from the current  941 delegates to 1162 delegates .

The meeting held today at the private residence in Hargeisa of the Vice President Hon Abdurrahman Abdullah Saylaci in which resulted to heated deliberations among the members of the ruling party Steering committee were all present, moments after the meeting ended it finally became clear they have agreed as a last resort to the allocation of party delegates through tribal quotas.

They committee members through voting agreed to bring aboard additional 221 new delegates from the present number of 941 and finally to a total of 1162 delegates after long heated debates lasting several hours.  

With new changes ruling party rules, KULMIYE loyalists hope it will be a lasting solution to long running and recurrence of the party’s internal wrangles.

The number of party delegates numbering at least 1162 shall be allocated through tribal quotas.

 1-  Habar-Jeclo 240

2- Habar Awal 240

3- Samaroon & Isse 196

4- Arab 146

5- Garxajis 136

6- Harti 136

7- Gabooye 24

8- Tol-Jecele 22

9–Ayuub 22

SomalilandPress.com

by Goth Mohamed Goth

The City of Sheffield has become the first city in the world to officially recognize Somaliland as an independent nation this after members of the city council unanimously passed by 83 members,2 voted against and 1 abstention earlier today.

Wednesday 2 April, Sheffield City Council voted to pass a motion recognising Somaliland’s right to self-determination, and calling on “the British government to recognise Somaliland as an independent state and to encourage other governments around the world to do the same.”
The historic debate was tabled by Councillor Mohammad Maroof who yesterday received over 2,000 signatures from the Somaliland community in Sheffield, petitioning the council to support recognition.

The Foreign Minister of Somaliland, the country’s most senior statesman aside from the President, Mohamed Bihi Yonis spoke in the Council Chamber, “Somaliland is a peaceful, democratic nation, which has been striving to be recognised by the international community since declaring independence in 1991. Sheffield’s decision will help strengthen our campaign for recognition.”

Councillor Neale Gibson (Lab) noted that “Somaliland fulfils all the criteria for statehood required by international law. A permanent population. A defined territory. A government. And the capacity to enter into relations with other states.”

Councillor Ben Curran (Lab) said “We hope that Sheffield’s support is just the first step to helping Somaliland fulfil its right to self-determination.”

Councillor Julie Dore (Lab) said “We fundamentally believe in Somaliland’s right to self-determination.”

The Energy Minister of Somaliland Hussein Abdi Dualeh thanked local Labour MPs Paul Blomfield and Clive Betts as well as City Councillors for their support of Somaliland’s independence.

Somaliland sees this as an important, breakthrough moment for their campaign to be recognised as an independent nation by the international community. Their Independence Day will be celebrated around the world on 18 May.

This Friday, 4 April, Sheffield Central MP Paul Blomfield will be speaking at ISRAAC, the Somali Community and Cultural Association, in support of Somaliland’s case for recognition.

By Goth Mohamed Goth

A delegation consisting of foreign diplomats based in Nairobi, Kenya and representatives of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Counter Piracy Programme arrived in the country yesterday for a three day visit working visit.

Somaliland Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Hon Hussein Ahmed Aided was there receive the visiting diplomats upon their arrival in the country at the Egal International Airport.

 The Diplomats from Australia, Holland and Norway and representatives of UNDOC Counter Piracy Programme are expected to visit and inspect the various development projects funded by their respective governments in Somaliland during their three day visit.

The Justice Minister speaking to the press said “Speaking on behalf of the people of Somaliland I would like to use this opportunity to extend our profound gratitude for their generosity of these three friendly nations which have been providing us with much needed assistance critical to the success of fighting piracy and in ensuring that judicial provisions on land are in place UNODC are working with the Somaliland authorities in the judicial reform process and prosecution services in a bid to step up responses to what is clearly a scourge both to maritime trade, travel and to local development.

The Commander of Somaliland custodial corps Brig. Gen. Mohamed Hussein Hiraanee speaking during the opening of a new vocational training building at the Mandera Maximum Prison said, “With this new facility we expect a shift in approach by prison authorities to supplement incarceration with skills development and rehabilitation is critical for transforming the lives of convicts. With this kind of prison reform in place we hope it will assist in tackling the long-term goal of dealing with piracy.

The visiting Diplomats are expected to visit the several correctional facilities in the country including the recently refurbished Hargeisa Prison in Somaliland, which was officially opened two years ago as part of UNODC’s counter-piracy work in Somaliland. The prison is considered critical to Somaliland’s efforts to deal with the piracy and will provide additional space for pirates arrested by Somaliland’s Coast Guard and convicts tried in other courts.

SomalilandPress.Com