The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) handed over control of the Afgoye military base to the Somali National Army (SNA) as part of plans to secure the transfer of security responsibilities to Somali forces.
Afgoye city was removed from Al-Shabaab’s control in May 2012 in a joint operation by AMISOM and SNA. The city, located along the main supply route to northern, western and southern Somalia, had since been secured by AMISOM’s Ugandan troops.
The base was handed over on Wednesday by AMISOM Deputy Commander in charge of operations and plans, Major General William Kitsao Shume to the Governor of the Lower Shabelle region, Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur Siidi.
Ugandan troops are deployed in an area of Somalia called Sector 1, which includes the Banadir and Lower Shabelle regions.
“This is in line with the AMISOM mandate, the Somalia Transition Plan and other strategic documents that envisage handing over priority locations as initial stages towards the transfer of security responsibilities to Somali security forces,” Shume said.
Shume appealed to the SNA to do its best to protect the area, secure the surrounding areas and reach out to AMISOM leaders for help where needed.
Shume added that over time, AMISOM will deliver other such areas, called Operating Base Forwarding (FOB).
Siidi, for her part, welcomed the handover, which describes the move as an opportunity for Somali security forces to handle larger tasks.
“If we keep the ground and ensure that the base is not broken, we will be able to take over all the other FOBs in the country. We want to stand on our own two feet and strengthen the government’s capacity, ”he said.
Since July 2017, six FOBs, including Afgoye, have been handed over to Somali security forces by AMISOM.
AMISOM troops were first deployed in Somalia in March 2007 and have since helped Somali security forces push the militant group out of much of southern Somalia, including most major cities.
