Training of Legal Advisors for the Legislative Branch of Government in Somaliland.
The Max Planck Foundation conducted the first Training-of-Trainers workshop for legal advisors embedded in Somaliland’s Parliament. The workshop was organized under the framework of the project Legal Capacity Building and Advice for the Legislative Branch of Government in Somalia funded by the EU. It was held in Hargeisa from 22 to 26 February 2023 and the delegation from the Foundation received a warm welcome on their arrival from the EU representative in Somaliland, Mr Adnan Hagoog.
The five-day training program intended to share the experience of various countries on issues related to the concept of bi-cameralism in unitary state systems, the relations between the executive and legislature in presidential systems, the resolution of disputes between two houses of the legislature, and the adoption and ratification of international treaties and conventions.
In this Training-of-Trainers workshop, the Foundation presented the pre-identified training topics from the comparative perspectives of various countries, accompanied by active discussions. The participants carefully looked into and analyzed each issue and exchanged their views on their relevance and applicability to the Somaliland system and context. After the completion of each session, the participants were asked to examine factual scenarios on the training topics and come up with some suggestions on how to address particular challenges. This led to intensive discussions on the training topics.
The workshop also addressed several shortcomings in Somaliland’s Constitution and legislations that require further work and support from the Foundation. The Foundation will continue its support to Somaliland’s Parliament by providing legal research and advice on matters related to its lawmaking process. In this regard, the Foundation came up with a work plan together with the local legal advisors, which is to be implemented in the coming months.