Friday, February 24, 2012
British Foreign Secretary State, William Hague
Yesterday Britain hosted a major international conference on Somalia, attended by headsof government and senior representatives from more than 50 countries andorganisations, including UN Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon,the AU Secretary GeneralJean Ping, Arab League Secretary GeneralNabil al-Araby/US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton] , and a large delegationof Somali leaders.
Togetherwe agreed that the time was right to work on a series of practical measuresaimed at helping Somalia get back on its feet.
First,we affirmed that the transitional government in Somalia must end in August andthat there must be no further extensions. The Somali people must determine the shape of their future politicalinstitutions – so we emphasised that the political process must be inclusiveand representative. We also agreed that the political process should be open toall those who are prepared to reject violence, including those in areascurrently under Al Shabaab control.
Wealso acted on the decision of African Heads of State to establish a JointFinancial Management Board to improve public financial management. Our aim is to have a mechanisms in place forreducing corruption, rebuilding trust and ensuring that Somali and donor fundsare properly and transparently spent on providing services to the Somalipeople.
Establishingsecurity is essential for making political progress. That’s why theinternational community has agreed to help AMISOM (the African Union troops)extend beyond Mogadishu, to further counter the challenge currently posed by AlShabaab. A new UN resolution hasendorsed an increase in troops from 12,000 to 17,731, along with a newequipment package.
Wealso moved to support Somalia’s regions of relative stability, agreeingprinciples for aid and establishing a new fund to resolve disputes at the locallevel, provide jobs and basic services that local people need and support thedevelopment of the local authorities. TheBritish Government announced a contribution of £15 million and several countriesfollowed suit.
Theconference also addressed the challenge of terrorism - a threat shared by theSomali people, the region and the wider world - prioritising the need todisrupt terrorists’ travel to and from Somalia and to disrupt their finances. Wewill also be supporting the Somali criminal justice system.
Onpiracy, the British Government and the Seychelles will establish a new regionalAnti-Piracy centre with support from other partners, which will look toprosecute the king-pins, ransom negotiators and middle men to break the piracybusiness cycle. There were also a numberof agreements between nations to make it easier for suspected pirates to betried in the region, and then transferred to Somali prisons.
Somaliahas suffered from a terrible famine in the past year. The conference alsohighlighted the need for donors from across the world to continue to respondgenerously to the crisis – and provide aid on the basis of need alone. Despitethe welcome announcement by the UN that famine conditions in Somalia have nowended, the humanitarian situation remains gravely concerning. 2.34 million people are still affected.
Togetherthese measures represent an attempt to change the dynamic in Somalia from oneof inexorable decline to one of gradually increasing stability andsecurity. We must be under no illusionsabout how long it will take to achieve it and our approach must be realisticand sober. We cannot turn Somalia around with one conference and the future isultimately in the hands of Somalis themselves. However, Somalis cannot do it on their own; that is why we called thisconference – to galvanise international support to Somalia and to send a signalto the people of Somalia that we will stand by them. And to remind all thosewho wilfully import and perpetuate violence and terrorism there that theyshould not underestimate our resolve.