MOGADISHU, Somalia – A two-day meeting to evaluate the gains of the security sector in Somalia has ended in Mogadishu, the capital, with the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the Somali National Army (SNA) agreeing on strategies for Somali security forces to take a leading role in security operations forward.
Attending the meeting were representatives of the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS), military leaders of the Somali National Army (SNA) and AMISOM as well as officials from the United Nations Support Office in Somalia, the British Mission Support Team and several of Somalia’s international partners.
“The conference marks an important milestone in the roadmap for peace and stability in Somalia, where Somali security forces must take a leading role in their own security operations, as outlined in the Somali Transition Plan (STP),” said Ambassador Madeira, the Special Representative of the President of The Commission of the African Union (SRCC) when he officially opened the conference on Wednesday.
The Somali Transition Plan is a key that can be provided in the AMISOM mandate agreed in December 2017, when the Federal Government of Somalia and the international community agreed on a conditional transition plan to enable Somalia to take full responsibility. responsibility for its safety.
Held under the theme “Joint planning and coordination with a harmonized plan for the timely and effective implementation of the AMISOM mandate”, the conference evaluated the progress of the implementation of the AMISOM Operation Concept 2018-2021, discussed the harmonization of military operations and plans, joint planning and coordination, the revised STP 2021 and UN Security Council Resolution 2568 (2021).
“I want to express my commitment to all the plans we have agreed on and make it clear that SNA is committed to carrying out its part as agreed. I urge the sectors to take the reconfiguration synchronization matrix seriously and put all its recommendations into action so that we can achieve our harmonized plans, ”said SNA Chief of Defense General Odawa Yusuf Rage, reiterating that his forces, with the support of AMISOM and other partners, have built capacity for possible assumption of security responsibility from AMISOM.
The conference ended on Thursday with a decision to follow a harmonized plan, which all sectors of AMISOM and the Somali security forces will jointly implement, led by the revised Somalia Transition Plan 2021 and UN Security Council Resolution 2568.
“We end the conference after discussing it and reaching a common understanding of the harmonized plan. I call on all sectors to begin its implementation together with the AMISOM mandate. You need to establish AMISOM-SNA’s joint planning and coordination cells within your sectors as soon as possible and ensure that they are fully operational, ”said AMISOM Force Commander, Lieutenant General Diomede Ndegeya, addressing the sector leaders who joined via an online link from their bases over Somalia.
“I urge the sector commanders to continue to dismantle Al-Shabaab and other armed opposition groups and secure the main supply routes and key population centers by conducting joint operations with Somali security forces,” the force chief added.
In a presentation on compliance with AMISOM’s obligation under International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and human rights, Dr. Omar Alasow, AMISOM’s senior IHL and human rights adviser, that AMISOM had adopted preventive and mitigating and interventional mechanisms to ensure compliance with IHL and human rights. obligations, including the implementation of the UN’s due diligence policy on human rights.
“The coming months will be crucial in the implementation of the decisions we have made together during this conference.
As the mission enters the next phase, where AMISOM is expected to gradually transfer security responsibilities to the Somali security forces, joint planning and coordination as well as a harmonized force configuration will enable the mission to maintain operational efficiency, so we can respond to threats in a timely and effective manner. within our area of responsibility, ”said SRCC Madeira in its concluding remarks.
