Opinion/Analysis
A pragmatic embrace: What Somalia’s deals with Algeria really mean
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On a crisp day in Algiers, Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Algeria’s Abdelmadjid Tebboune signed a set of agreements that, on the surface, read like a conventional exercise in diplomacy: memorandums, scholarship pledges and cooperation pacts. But beneath the ritual of ceremonial pens and ministers exchanging folders there is a subtler story about how fragile, resource-rich states seek partners beyond the usual Western and regional patrons — and how Algeria is quietly sharpening a profile as a regional balancer and capacity-builder.
What was agreed — and why it matters
The headline is straightforward: Algeria committed to 500 scholarships for Somali students, aimed at fields such as agriculture, fisheries and petroleum management. Ministers also initialed cooperation on energy exploration, education and livestock trade — sectors that touch on Somalia’s immediate needs and long-term potential.
Scholarships are not just goodwill gestures. For a country that has been rebuilding its institutions since the collapse of the Siad Barre regime more than three decades ago, human capital remains a binding constraint. Technical training in fisheries and agriculture could help revitalize food production and coastal economies; expertise in petroleum management is a precursor to responsibly handling potential hydrocarbon revenues.
Equally practical is interest in Somalia’s livestock market. Livestock exports are a backbone of Somalia’s economy, underpinning livelihoods across pastoral communities and fuelling trade links to the Arabian Peninsula and beyond. Algeria’s engagement signals interest not only in energy but in trade flows and regulatory know-how that could help Somalis get more value from their own assets.
Algeria’s strategic calculus
Algeria is neither a newcomer to African affairs nor a passive player. With a history of championing anti-colonial causes and a long-held stance of non-alignment, it has both credibility and a reservoir of diplomatic capital across the continent and in the Arab world. Its economy — built on hydrocarbons — gives it the financial room to offer scholarships and technical cooperation, even if it is not projecting influence through large infrastructure loans like some other external actors.
For Algeria, cultivating ties with Somalia extends its reach into the Horn of Africa, a region that is increasingly central to global shipping routes, security concerns and energy geopolitics. Soft-power investments in education and technical assistance reflect an approach that emphasises institution-building and long-term relationships, rather than quick resource grabs.
What this means for Somalia’s fragile recovery
For Mogadishu, the Algeria outreach is a welcome diversification of partnerships. Somalia has for years leaned on Gulf states, Turkey, and increasingly China for investment and political support. Adding Algeria to that mix provides a partner with different priorities: a preference for education and governance capacity rather than purely transactional infrastructure deals.
That matters because governance gaps, more than discovery of oil or gas, have often determined whether resource wealth becomes a blessing or a curse. If scholarships and training translate into accountants, regulators and petroleum managers who can enforce transparent contracts, collect revenues and safeguard communities, they will pay dividends beyond the classroom.
Limitations and the hard realities ahead
Yet for all the promise, the road ahead is rocky. Somalia’s security environment, fragmented federal politics and the persistent threat from Al-Shabaab complicate efforts to translate diplomatic goodwill into on-the-ground development. Oil and gas exploration has been pursued for years in Somalia’s waters and onshore blocks with mixed results; commercial production remains distant and contingent on stable governance and clear legal frameworks.
Scholarships can equip a new generation, but those graduates will still return to a country grappling with weak institutions and contested authority. Cooperation on livestock markets will be useful, but it requires secure trade corridors, veterinary services, and market standards to be effective. These are long, often tedious tasks — the kind of nation-building that yields results only over years, not weeks.
Broader trends and questions for the region
The Algeria–Somalia deals sit at the intersection of several larger currents reshaping Africa. First, there is a growing emphasis on South–South cooperation: African states are increasingly turning to one another for expertise, training and political support rather than relying solely on ex-colonial powers or multilateral institutions. Second, the politics of energy and food security are converging. Nations with expertise in hydrocarbons are positioning themselves to influence how new producers manage resources.
Finally, the diplomatic choreography underscores a competition of models. Will Somalia’s reconstruction tilt towards capacity-building and governance-focused partnerships, or towards rapid commercial exploitation backed by foreign capital? Algeria’s approach nudges Somalia toward the former, but the incentives for fast money — and the actors prepared to provide it — remain strong.
As this relationship unfolds, a few questions deserve attention: Can Algeria’s scholarships be turned into a coherent human-capital strategy that complements domestic reforms in Somalia? Will training in petroleum management be matched by legal and institutional reforms needed for transparent resource governance? And crucially, can these initiatives be protected from the insecurity and factional politics that have long eroded Somali development prospects?
Diplomacy often begins with grand gestures. The true measure of success will be whether these pacts lead to durable institutions, secure livelihoods and a generation of Somali professionals who can steward their country’s resources. For a nation trying to move past three decades of conflict, partnerships that invest in people rather than merely in projects may offer the steadier path — but only if ambition is matched by patience and political will.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
