FACT CHECK: Farmaajo’s claims on Somalia’s ‘readiness’ to join UN Security Council misleading

GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU: Outgoing Somali President Mohamed Farmaajo who has been in office for about a year now beyond constitutional dictates claimed in his speech on Monday that Somalia was ‘prepared to become a non-member of the UN Security.’ That claim is far stretched.

Whereas every UN member state has the right to join the prestigious 15 member club of the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member, Somalia’s journey to the club is not feasible any sooner as Farmaajo would want the country to believe.

First, Somalia remains a perennial defaulter in meeting its annual financial obligations to the UN.  A communication from the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on January 12, 2022 noted that Somalia owes the UN $1.4 million making it ineligible to vote at the UN General Assembly in line with Article 19 of the UN Charter.

The article however exempts countries whose capacity to meet their financial obligations is insufficient owing to economic challenges. Somalia is the third-highest defaulter at the UN after Iran and Venezuela which owe the UN $18m and $39 million respectively.

Secondly, the process towards joining the UNSC as a non-permanent member is a long one that requires a lot of lobbying both within the region, in the continent and globally. Somalia is yet to mount such a campaign but is currently embroiled in a torturous electoral process that has been running for over six months.

Africa will be having one vacant seat at the Council at the end of this year when Kenya’s term lapses. Somalia will therefore need to convince the continent to be endorsed for that seat should it desire to vie this year.

The remarks by the outgoing President were therefore a political campaign aimed at whipping public opinion and remotely based on any fact.