Foundation concludes training programme for the Puntland House of Representatives

Final workshop on Somali constitutional law from a comparative perspective for members of the Puntland House of Representatives

On 23 May 2021, the Max Planck Foundation organised the third workshop for members of the Puntland House of Representatives. The workshop addressed the topic “Legislative Processes on the State Level”.  Upon request of the participants, and after the workshop, another presentation was held on the more general topic “Role of the Legislature in Law Making and Constitutional Amendments”. Furthermore, the Foundation distributed copies of its latest publications related to Somali federalism, including the Federalism Manual, the Federalism Glossary, and the State Constitutions Compatibility Study.

The EU funded project Legal Capacity Building and Technical Support for the Somali Federal Parliament envisages the organisation of three workshops on Somali constitutional law from a comparative perspective for selected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the Somali Federal Member States. Each workshop includes a presentation on the topic from a comparative perspective, a practical working group assignment, and a plenary discussion. With the organisation of the third workshop for members of the Puntland House of Representatives, this training program concluded in Puntland.

The training programme for the Puntland House of Representatives commenced in December 2019 and ended in May 2021. It covered the following thematic areas: the Somali Provisional Constitution 2012 and the Constitutional Review Process in Somalia; Federal Member States’ Constitutions; and Legislative Processes on the State Level.

The workshops on Somali constitutional law from a comparative perspective were highly appreciated by the members of the Puntland House of Representatives and its political leadership. They requested that the Foundation provide additional capacity building workshops in the near future.