Somalia: Technical Committee on Formation of Interim South West State Administration

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The President of the Federal Government of Somalia His Excellency Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the Prime Minister His Excellency Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed and the Speaker of Parliament His Excellency Mohamed Osman Jawari tonight hosted an Iftar ceremony in which the nomination of an 18-member Technical Committee on Formation of Interim South West Administration was announced and endorsed. Cabinet members, elders from various constituencies in South West Somalia and other key stakeholders, attended the ceremony.

The formation of the technical committee is an important first step towards the implementation of the agreement reached by the opposing sides in South West Somalia on June 23rd, 2014, under the guidance of H.E. Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed to form an interim South West State Administration. The committee, whose members were selected based on the principle of inclusive politics and with careful consideration of the individual capacities of the members, will be supported by a team of Cabinet members under the leadership of the Prime Minister.

The three leaders and the elders who attended the ceremony expressed their satisfaction with the progress of the efforts to form an inclusive interim administration in South West Somalia and reaffirmed their support for the implementation of the South West Agreement.

Speaking at the ceremony, H.E. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said:

“This is another important milestone achieved in our efforts towards a democratic and federal Somalia, where we aim to bring the government closer to the people and promote unity. This process was difficult, but it finally paid off through collaborative efforts and we are all happy with the outcome. We have come together tonight to celebrate all the hard work that went into the agreement and the formation of the technical committee that will facilitate the formation of an Interim South West State Administration.”

Affirming the thoughts of the President, H.E. Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed said:

“I would like to congratulate the committee members and wish them well in the important work ahead. I pledge my full support for this process and would like to assure the committee of the commitment of the federal government to the success of this endeavor. This process is critical to the advancement of federalism in our country and the formation of Federal Somali States in the country. My Cabinet and I look forward to working with the committee towards this noble goal.”

On his part, Speaker Jawari commended the government’s commitment to federalism and said:

“Congratulations to the government on this political achievement. This represents the foundation of the formation of the interim state administration, and we hope that the technical committee will successfully steer the process of forming an inclusive interim administration.”