The Somali government and the U.N. political mission office in Somalia have started discussions to plan an orderly transition from the U.N. special political mission to a U.N. Country Team.
Leading the Somali government technical committee was former Foreign Minister Ambassador Yusuf Garad Omar, while the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations led the U.N. team.
Writing on X (formerly Twitter), Ambassador Omar stated, “The Somali government has embarked on discussions with the U.N. to plan an orderly transition from a special political mission to a U.N. Country Team. It began with a historic meeting between technical teams from both sides. Discussions are expected to intensify in the coming weeks.”
Outlining its plans, the federal government aims to assume control over certain activities currently managed by the United Nations political office, with the rest to be overseen by a new United Nations office that will replace the current one.
Symbolizing its progress, the government stated that this step shows Somalia is set to become a member of the Security Council in 2025.
Advising Somalia on peace-building, security reforms, and democracy for over a decade, the 360-member United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) was requested by the government to terminate when its mandate expires in October.
Providing no specific reasons for the decision, Somali Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Moalim Fiqi stated only that the government believes “it is now appropriate to transition to the next phase of our partnership.
