Dhallinyarada Soomaaliyeed shaqo la’aan, ajaanibta shaqo helaya: caddaalad-darro qaran, khatar mustaqbaleed

Somalia’s Jobless Youth and the Expat Premium: What Happens When a Country Outsources Its Future?

MOGADISHU — On a hot morning near Kilometre 4, the capital’s arteries of traffic pulse around concrete blast walls and coffee stalls. At a curbside kiosk, a queue of young men and women refresh their phones, swapping links to job ads that feel always just out of reach. Many are college graduates; most live with family; almost all say the same thing: the opportunities are elsewhere.

Somalia is far from the only place where a “youth bulge” collides with a thin job market. But the stakes here are acute. Aid agencies and contractors form a parallel economy; security demands narrow the field; and foreign expertise often comes packaged with foreign payrolls. The result is a paradox that echoes across other fragile states: in a country where youth unemployment is among the highest in the world, some of the best-paid jobs are held by non-citizens.

A youthful nation with few ladders upward

The United Nations estimates that roughly seven in ten Somalis are under 30. International surveys vary on exact figures, but economists and aid groups broadly agree: youth unemployment runs above 50% in many communities. That figure doesn’t fully capture the insecurity of day-to-day life—the gig economy of boda-boda rides, seasonal casual work, and the long shadow of conflict that skews the labor market.

For a generation raised on WhatsApp and remittance lifelines, the cognitive dissonance is stark. Somalia hosts dozens of international agencies and development projects. Office towers glow at night. Yet entry-level jobs in those compounds often require years of experience, multiple languages, and security clearances—barriers that tilt the hiring game toward expatriates or a narrow slice of the diaspora.

In a widely shared local commentary, one young Somali wrote, “Inta aan Soomaaliya joogi lahaa, badda ayaan ku dhimanayaa”—better to risk the sea than remain at home without work. There is harsh poetry in that despair. It’s also a ledger of lost human capital, paid in funeral notices from the Mediterranean.

The expat premium meets local law

Somalia’s Labour Code—Law No. 65 of 1972—was written in another era, but its intent is unambiguous. It bars discrimination based on nationality, prioritizes qualified Somali workers when available, and restricts hiring foreign workers for roles that citizens can perform. In practice, enforcement is fragile. Ministries overseeing labor, planning and foreign affairs face the same constraints as the broader state: underfunded inspectorates, limited data, and a political class trying to balance sovereignty with badly needed outside help.

That tension is familiar to anyone who has reported in Kabul, Juba or Port-au-Prince. When a project’s donor clock is ticking, contractors often default to the quickest “safe pair of hands.” Risk managers lean toward known expatriate networks; insurers price policies accordingly; and the “expat premium”—salaries that can climb into five figures a month—becomes the cost of doing business. Procurement, too, gravitates toward foreign firms that bring compliance track records and armies of auditors.

None of this is a moral failure on its face, and many foreign staff do crucial work. But the accumulation effect is corrosive: a labor market that sidelines national graduates, budgets that leak value abroad, and social media feeds that turn cynicism into an organizing principle.

Silence at the top, frustration below

Somali officials know the optics. Some push quietly for localization, and there are projects that train and transition roles to national staff. Yet the political incentive to publicly challenge international partners is low. Officials fear jeopardizing funds or projects that keep clinics running and payrolls afloat. The result is a studied silence—and a widening trust gap with young citizens who hear promises of “jobs for the youth” while watching SUVs roll into compounds they can’t enter.

This is not simply about pride or optics. It is about macroeconomics and migration. When high-value salaries are remitted abroad and procurement bypasses local firms, Somalia forfeits multiplier effects that could seed industries. When qualified national candidates are undercut by blanket “security” rationales, brain drain accelerates—first to Nairobi and Addis, then to Dubai and Europe.

The global pattern—and a way through

Somalia’s dilemma mirrors a larger story in fragile and post-conflict states. Across Afghanistan, South Sudan and the Sahel, well-intended aid has sometimes created an enclave economy. The best remedy is not to slam the door on foreign expertise—it’s to design systems that translate external resources into domestic capacity, with the discipline to measure progress.

What would that look like in Mogadishu and beyond?

• Enforce the law, transparently: Require all foreign employers to publish annual workforce data—shares of national vs. expatriate staff, salary bands, and plans to localize roles. Tie project renewals to credible localization milestones.
• Skill transfer with teeth: Make “shadowing-to-ownership” a contractual clause—every expatriate technical role paired with a Somali counterpart with a dated handover plan.
• National graduate pipelines: Create sector-wide internship and apprenticeship quotas funded by donors but managed by Somali universities and technical institutes, with competitive stipends to keep talent in-country.
• Local procurement first: Set clear thresholds for sourcing from Somali businesses, vetted for quality but not excluded by paperwork designed for multinationals.
• Diaspora as bridge, not bypass: Incentivize short, high-impact diaspora tours—sprints of 3–6 months—to train teams and build systems, rather than permanent displacements of national staff.

These ideas aren’t theoretical. Variations exist in Rwanda’s localization policies, Liberia’s post-Ebola health staffing, and the UN’s growing—if uneven—commitments to national staff development. The hard part is discipline: paying attention to the metrics long after the ribbon-cutting photos fade.

A question to donors and to Mogadishu

To international partners: If the goal is a stable Somalia, how does your hiring and procurement today build the workforce that will run the systems tomorrow? Counting training sessions isn’t enough; what matters is who sits in the chair in five years.

To Somali leaders: Is it sustainable to trade political quiet for a generation’s disillusionment? The law is there. The public is watching. Enforcing fair hiring and publishing the numbers would send a message that the state is not a spectator to its own labor market.

Somalis have a proverb: “Nin aan shaqayn shilin ma helo”—he who doesn’t work earns no coin. The inverse is also true: when work is denied to those ready to do it, a nation pays dearly. The young people refreshing their phones in Mogadishu do not lack ambition. They lack ladders. Building those ladders—through law, policy and a new compact with donors—is the difference between a country that exports its future and one that keeps it home.

A better equilibrium is possible. The question now is whether Somalia’s partners, and its own government, are ready to move from words to wages.

By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.

 

Shaqo la’aanta dhallinyarada Soomaaliyeed waa mid ka mid ah mushkiladaha ugu waaweyn ee hortaagan horumarka dalka. Iyadoo boqolkiiba ka badan 70% bulshada ay yihiin dhallinyaro, haddana in ka badan kala bar ma haystaan shaqo joogto ah. Kuwaas oo intooda badan ay ku khasbanaadeen inay ka tahriibaan dalka, iyagoo rajaynaya nolol iyo fursad ay dalkooda ka waayeen.Dhanka kale, gudaha Soomaaliya waxaa si joogto ah u shaqeeya hay’ado caalami ah iyo mashaariic horumarineed, kuwaas oo shaqaalaha muhiimka ah ka dhigtay ajaaniib mushaharkoodu gaarayo tobannaan kun oo dollar bishii, halka dhalinyaradii Soomaaliyeed lagu eedeynayo “khibrad la’aan.”Tani waa dhibaato dhaqan, mid siyaasadeed, mid sharciyeed iyo mid qaran oo u baahan in si dhab ah loo wajaho, si loo ilaaliyo xuquuqda muwaadinka Soomaaliyeed iyo madaxbannaanida shaqo ee qaranka Soomaaliyeed.

SABABAHA AASAASKA U AH SHAQO LA’AANTA DHALLINYARADA SOOMAALIYEED:Sababaha ugu waaweyn ee dhalinyarada Soomaaliyeed shaqo la’aanta ugu dhacday waxaa ka mid ah:• Nidaam siyaasadeed oo aan ku dhisnayn qorshe dhaqaale oo waara.• Maqnaanta warshado iyo maalgashi gudaha ah.• Kalsooni la’aanta hay’adaha dowladda iyo musuqmaasuqa.• Ku tiirsanaanta mashaariic shisheeye.• Fursadaha shaqo ee yaraa oo si aan cadaalad ahayn loo qaybiyo.Natiijada ka dhalatay waxay noqotay in dhallinyaradii Soomaaliyeed ay noqdaan kuwo rajadoodii ku iibiyay badda iyo saxaraha, halka ajnabi ku sugan Muqdisho uu ku raaxaysto mushaar ka badan $10,000 bishii.

SHAQAALEYSIINTA AJAANIBTA IYO JEBINTA XEERKA SHAQAALAHA SOOMAALIYEED:

Xeerka Shaqaalaha Soomaaliyeed (Labour Code – Law No. 65, 1972) wuxuu si cad u qeexayaa dhowr qodob oo muhiim ah:• Qodobka 4-aad: Shaqaalaha Soomaaliyeed waxay mudan yihiin xuquuq siman, mana jiri karto eex ama kala duwanaansho ku saleysan jinsiyad ama asal.• Qodobka 5-aad: Hay’ad kasta oo dalka ka shaqeysa waa in ay mudnaanta siisaa shaqaalaha Soomaaliyeed marka uu jiro qof Soomaali ah oo qaban kara shaqadaas.• Qodobka 6-aad: Shaqaale ajaanib ah looma oggola in uu qabto shaqo uu qaban karo muwaadin Soomaaliyeed, haddii aanay jirin xirfad gaar ah oo dalka laga waayo.Marka la eego xeerkan, waxaa muuqata in hay’ado badan oo caalami ah iyo mashaariic gudaha dalka ka socda ay si toos ah u jebinayaan sharciga shaqaalaha Soomaaliyeed. Waxayna tan ku sameeyaan iyadoo aanay jirin cid kormeerta, oggolaansho lagula xisaabtamo, ama dabagal ay sameyso wasaaradihii u xil saarnaa ilaalinta xuquuqda shaqaalaha, oo ay ugu horeeyaan Wasaaradaha Shaqada iyo Shaqaalaha, Qorsheynta iyo Wasaaradda Arrimaha Dibadda.

AAMUSNAANTA MASUULIYIINTA QARANKA IYO SAAMEYNTA SIYAASADEED:Marka hay’ad caalami ah ay shaqaaleysiiso ajaanib mushahar xad-dhaaf ah, iyadoo dhalinyarada Soomaaliyeed shaqo la’aan yihiin, waa arrin ay tahay in dowladdu ka falceliso. Balse waxa dhacaya waa aamusnaan siyaasadeed iyo ka leex-leexasho masuuliyadeed. Masuuliyiinta dowladdu waxay mararka qaar doorbidaan in ay iska indho-tiraan arrintan, iyagoo ka cabsanaya in xiriirkooda dibadeed uu dhaawacmo ama dan gaar ah laga luminayo. Tani waxay sababtay in dawladdii ay noqoto daawade, halkii ay ahaan lahayd ilaaliye xuquuqda muwaadiniinta.Natiijada siyaasadeed ee ka dhalata aamusnaantan waa kalsooni darro bulsho, dhiirrigelin tahriib, iyo hoos u dhac ku yimaada fikirka qarannimo jaceylka ee dhalinyarada.

SAAMEYNTA BULSHO IYO DHAQAALE:Shaqo la’aanta iyo shaqaaleysiinta ajaanibta waxay sababeen arrimahaan hoose:• Kalsooni beel: Dhallinyaradu waxay dareemayaan in ay dalkoodu dayacay, taasoo keentay niyad jab guud.• Tahriib iyo dhimasho: Dhalinyarada ayaa u arka badda “fursad” halkii ay ka ahaan lahayd “halis.” Dhallinyaro ayaa igu dhahday aniga Mohamed ah “Inta aan Soomaaliya joogi lahaa, badda ayaan ku dhimanayaa” sow Xanuun maaha!• Khasaaraha dhaqaale: Lacagaha ay hay’aduhu bixiyaan oo dhan kama faa’iido qaranku, maadaama inta badan dibadda loo wareejiyo oo ay dalalkoodii u dirsanayaan.• Dhimashada xirfadda gudaha: Ajaanibta ayaa qabsaday jagooyinkii muhiimka ahaa ee xirfadlayaasha Soomaaliyeed.

 TALO QARAN IYO BAAQHaddii aan la joojin nidaamka hadda jira, Soomaaliya waxay lumin doontaa jiilkii shaqayn lahaa, hal-abuurnimo iyo hufnaan. Waxaa muhiim ah in la qaado tallaabooyin cad-cad oo siyaasadeed iyo sharci ah oo ay ugu horeeyaan:1. Dib-u-eegis lagu sameeyo shaqaaleysiinta ajaanibtaWasaaradda Shaqada iyo Shaqaalaha waa in ay si joogto ah u kormeerto cidda la shaqaaleysiinayo, iyadoo lagu saleynayo baahi dhab ah iyo khibrad aan dalka laga helin. 2. Mudnaanta shaqaalaha SoomaaliyeedHay’ad kasta oo dalka ka shaqeysa waa in ay caddeyso in aysan jirin Soomaali qaban karta shaqadaas, ka hor inta aysan ajaanib shaqaaleysiin.3. Dhiirrigelinta barnaamijyada xirfadaha dhallinyaradaDowladdu waa in ay maalgelisaa barnaamijyo tababar xirfadeed, internship-yo iyo shaqo-abuur gudaha ah.4. Dardargelinta xisaabtan iyo daahfurnaanWasaaraddaha iyo hay’adaha dowladda ee arrintaani si toos ah iyo si dadbanba u quseyso waa in ay daabacaan warbixino sannadle ah oo ku saabsan shaqaaleysiinta ajaanibta iyo tirada shaqaalaha Soomaaliyeed ee la shaqaaleysiiyay.5. Kobcinta ganacsiga gudaha iyo maalgashiga dhalinyaradaDhallinyarada waa in la dhiirrigeliyo in ay abuuraan ganacsi yaryar, iyadoo la siinayo deeqo, tababar iyo suuq-galinta badeecadooda.Soomaaliya maanta waxay u baahan tahay in ay ka baxdo heerka ah “dal shaqo la’aan ah oo shisheeye u shaqeeyo.” Dowladnimo micnaheedu waa in muwaadinka la ilaaliyo, la dhiirrigeliyo, lana siiyo fursad uu dalkiisa ku dhiso – ma ahan in la daawado isagoo ku dhimanaya badda, halka ajaanib lagu maamuusayo xafiisyada Muqdisho.Horumarka dhabta ah wuxuu yimaadaa marka qaranku aaminaa dhalinyaradiisa, u dhiibo mas’uuliyad, isla markaana ilaaliyo xuquuqdooda shaqo.

Haddaba, su’aasha weyn waxay tahay:Ma xaqbaa in ajaanib lagu shaqaaleysiiyo mushahar xad-dhaaf ah, iyadoo dhalinyaradii Soomaaliyeed shaqo la’aan darteed u tahriibayaan badda Mediterranean-kaWaa waqtigii aynu cod mideysan ku dhihi lahayn:“Shaqada Soomaaliyeed ha u furnaato, mudnaanta kowaadna ha helaan dhallinta Soomaaliyeed!”Dhallinyaro aan fursad haysan waa qaran aan mustaqbal lahayn.

“Hadda ama Hadhow”~Idanka Illaaheey.

Mohamed Ismail Abdullahi  (Mohamed Midnimo)[email protected]