The Foundation commenced training workshops to the Somali Ministry of Interior and Federal Affairs (MoIFA)
On 28 September 2015, Foundation’s Somali technical advisors delivered the first training workshop to members of the MoIFA in Mogadishu, Somalia. The workshops are part of a wider project to assist the Somali federalisation process through capacity building and the continuous provision of technical assistance on legal issues of significance to members of the MoIFA and the Boundaries and Federation Commission, the two entities spearheading the federalization process in Somalia. The Foundation implements the project with the financial support of the German Federal Foreign Office.
Following the successful conclusion of the first training-of-trainers workshop, Foundation’s technical advisors embedded in the MoIFA conducted the first workshop to members of the Ministry. Eighteen participants selected by the MoIFA’s Training Department attended the workshop. The workshop introduced the participants to important concepts in federalism and decentralisation. The Foundation’s advisors discussed the governance structures established in historical Somali constitutions and the changes brought about by the Provisional Constitution. The participants welcomed and drew useful lessons from the comparative examples based on the laws and experiences of federal countries in Africa and beyond.
The workshop was highly participatory and involved group discussion and reporting on issues arising in the ongoing federalisation process.
Based on discussions with the participants, the next training workshop for members of the MoIFA will be held in November 2015. It will focus on legal and practical issues arising in the formation of Federal Member States in Somalia.