The European Union funded project “Strengthening the Role and Impact of the Somali Federal Parliament in the Somali Constitutional Review Process” aims at enhancing the role and impact of the Somali Federal Parliament in the constitutional review process. The objective is to increase the knowledge and capacities of members of the Somali Federal Parliament of current constitutional review and implementation issues and to work towards technically and legally improved draft constitutional amendments prepared by the relevant parliamentary bodies. The main focus is to support the Somali Federal Parliament in developing a new legal order based on the ideas of constitutionalism, rule of law, and good governance. As overall objective (impact), this project aims at increasing the chances for a successful completion of the constitutional review process and thus foster greater coherence of the overall constitutional framework for the newly established governance system in Somalia.

Under the framework of the project, the Max Planck Foundation will organise regular trainings for members of the Somali Federal Parliament to delve into current constitutional review issues, such as the status of the federal capital, the allocation of powers between different levels of government in a federal system, natural resource sharing, and multi-level elections. The Foundation will also provide on-demand comparative legal advice and counsel on these issues for relevant parliamentary bodies of the Somali Federal Parliament. This includes the development of memos, overview- and background information materials, legal opinions, and technical support for the drafting of speeches, statements, or legal instruments of the relevant parliamentary bodies. Then the project team will provide technical legal assistance to relevant parliamentary bodies on the drafting of constitutional amendments. This support is mainly directed towards supporting the Independent Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission (ICRIC), which is mandated to draft actual constitutional amendments based on the instructions and with the guidance of the Constitutional Review and Implementation Oversight Committee of the Somali Federal Parliament (OC). Furthermore, the project team will provide logistical and substantial support for the organisation of interregional dialogue conferences on the Somali constitutional review process between relevant parliamentary bodies on the federal and state level, ie the Constitutional Review and Implementation Oversight Committee of the Somali Federal Parliament and the relevant Constitutional Affairs Committees of the Federal Member State Legislative Assemblies. Expected results are an increase of knowledge of members of the Somali Federal Parliament on current constitutional review issues, enhanced capacity of relevant parliamentary bodies to contribute to and manage the Somali constitutional review process, enhanced technical quality of draft constitutional amendments, and the fostering of interregional dialogue between the Somali Federal Parliament and Federal Member State Legislative Assemblies on draft constitutional amendments.

For the purpose of effectively organising and conducting the different project activities in Somalia, the project will be implemented in partnership with the Somali Center for the Rule of Law and Good Governance in Mogadishu (SomLaw). SomLaw is a newly established non-governmental organisation of Somali lawyers and administration experts, who have been collaborating with and been trained by the Foundation in previous projects. The partnership between the Foundation and SomLaw, therefore, is built on years of successful collaboration and trainings, and contributes to the sustainability of the Foundation’s project interventions in Somalia.

European Union

01 January 2024 – 30 June 2025

Jan Amilcar Schmidt

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Phone: +49 (0)6221 91404 61
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