Corruption In Somalia

Corruption in Somalia

Somalia is a relatively small country in the very eastern part of Africa. Located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia shares its borders with Ethiopia, Kenya, and the Indian Ocean. Somalia has a population of 11.3 million, making it only the 26th largest country by population in Africa, however, it’s population is projected to double by 2050 according to the US census July 2018 data (US Census Bureau). The population is particurlarlly homogenous with 99% being Sunni Muslism. Somalians mostly speak Somali, others speak Arabic because of the high Muslism population, or Italian and English because of their country’s colonial rule. Colonial rule in Somolia was espicaly divided. The French, mainly in the north, Itailians ruled in the southern part, Ethopia controlled an inland region called Ogaden and the British controlled the rest. Colonial rule over Somalia was also divided structurally with the Italians being more dedicated to developing their colony in the north and the British ruling with a more hands-off approach. At the tail end of World War 2 and the middle of the cold war, Somalia gained independence in 1960. The divded colonial history, however, had huge underpinnings for most of the country’s problems the country faces today.

Shortly after independence Somalia was the iron-fisted grips of General Mohammaed Said Barre, a significant political leader that ran a dictatorship from 1960 to 1991. Under his rule the civilians endured human rights violations and oppression. In January 1990, the Africa Watch Committee from the Human Rights Watch organization released a report called, “Somalia A Government At War with Its Own People,” detailing the extent of human rights violations under Barre including the detainment and toture of political opponents. The Ogaden campaign, Barre’s poltical campaign to regain Ogaden from Ethoopia, turned out to be unsuccessful, riling the public which led to further oprresion. By 1990, rising milita groups such as the Somali Salvation Demcoractic Front and the Somalia Patriotic Movememnt, banded together and Barre was removed from office by 1991.

Currently, Somalia has established a federal parliamentary republic with Mohammed Abduallhi Farmajo as the president. Farmajo faced food insecurtiy, poverty, disease outbreak, an unstable government, rising sectional tensions alongside growing violence such as Al-Shaaab, a militant group that promotes the unity of Islam and has recentaly gained momentum, AS WELL AS rampamt corruption.

Corruption is ESPICALLY damaging to developing countries like Somalia because the progress of development relies heavily upon the state’s capacity. Similarly, a state’s capacity and corruption are interrelated in that corruption is perputated and caused by a lower state capacity. In Somlia’s case, to show the extent of the state’s corruption, Kaunani Rahman from Transparency Internationl wrote, “corruption is both one of the leading causes and consequences of endemic political instability in Somlia, which has been ranked bottom of Transparancy International’s Corruption Perception Index every year since 2006,” (Rahamn pg. 1). Corruption in Somalia occurs at all levels, public and private. As one form of corruption, political corruption appears to be most the prominent. For instant, the government has had a problem with the misapprorporation of state funds. From 2013 to 2014 the Central Bank was involved in a public scandal where 80% of it’s withdrawls were being made my indidivuals for private gain. The money was used to garner political support, effectively creating a public distrust between not only the individual poltiicans, but the electoral process itself. “According to Adirazak Fartaag, former Somali govenremnt official, the new election system by which 14,000 representatives elected a parliament who in turned selected the president has spawned “corruption inflation” with some parliament seats reportedly going for more than $1 million,” (Rahaman pg. 4). Moreover, corruption in polticis effectively creates a distrust between Soamli’s cititzens and the gvoernemnt, destryongin the state’s capacity.

Next, corruption is PROMOINENT in business. Practices such as bribery and public procurement, where government contracts are being awarded to relatives, and tenders are usually private, reveal the extent of corruption in businesses and the private sector. Outside of political corruption and corruption in businesses, instances of the government directly affecting the state’s corruption can be seen in the example of the dire health conditions that weren’t fixed because of the privatization of healthcare provsisions. As another example, the Somali national army sysetematically inflates it’s troop numbers to receive greater funding. Both healthcare and secutiry ranking towards the top of the list of NEEDS.

The prevalvance of Somali’s corruption is not only caused by corruption itself, but is exxaerbated by it’s affects. Transparancy International points to the “absence of a strong functional central govenrmenet,” “lack of resources and adminitative cpacitiy,” and, “weak leadership strucutres,” as CONTINUING of Somali’s corruption.

On the other hand, to pinpoint the source of Somali’s rampant corruption, research points to employment. The civiv sector for example has low wages which, in turn, can encrouage petty corruption. Second, the imbalance of supply and demand economoically, provides the opportunity for corruption. Also, in many cases, economic and political gain overlap in that poltkicans are willing to reward people that benefit them economically in exchange for poltical power.

Others point to the region as cause for Somali’s rampant corruption. According to the SSRC (Space and Sceicne Research Center) for the Horn of Africa, the Horn of Africa is “…one fo the most complex and conflicted regions of the world. Each of the countries of the Horn-Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritera, Dijbouti and Sudan-suffers from protracted poltical strife, arising from local and national grievance, identity polticals and regional itner-state rivalaries,” (SSRC). As an overlapping explaination, the history of a violent and divded colonization in Somalia could also explain the problems that exsist in the state, that ultatemtely set the stage for it’s ramapant corruption.

The case of education being a source of corruption proves to be the strongest. Accorind to UNICEF (United Nation’s Internaiotnla Children’s Emergency Fund), “Somalia has one of the world’s lowest enrolment rates for primary school-aged children – only 30 per cent of children are in school and only 40 per cent of these are girls. Further, only 18 per cent of children in rural households are in school,” (UNICEF). Less of an education inevitably leads to a lower education on rights, particuallry civil rights. A Worldwide Governance Indicators test reported in 2016 by Transparacny Itnernationla, “of all six sub-categories, accountability was the highest performing with an aggregate score of 44,” (Rahaman pg. 3). At the same time, enrolment rates in school have increased due to intenraitonla aid and the govnerment’s launch of a “Go-2-School: educationing for resilience” intiativve. Additionally, the arugment of education also envelpts the arugment of employment because better education would lead to better jobs and wages ideally.

The government has also taken some intitaives to directly DECREASE it’s corruption. In fact, Somalia ratified the United Nation’s Convention Against Corruption that requires country’s to take-anti-corruption measures. In 2011 the government established the Anti-Corruption Commiteee. MORE ABOUT THIS .Corruption in Somalia

Somalia is a relatively small country in the very eastern part of Africa. Located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia shares its borders with Ethiopia, Kenya, and the Indian Ocean. Somalia has a population of 11.3 million, making it only the 26th largest country by population in Africa, however, it’s population is projected to double by 2050 according to the US census July 2018 data (US Census Bureau). The population is particurlarlly homogenous with 99% being Sunni Muslism. Somalians mostly speak Somali, others speak Arabic because of the high Muslism population, or Italian and English because of their country’s colonial rule. Colonial rule in Somolia was espicaly divided. The French, mainly in the north, Itailians ruled in the southern part, Ethopia controlled an inland region called Ogaden and the British controlled the rest. Colonial rule over Somalia was also divided structurally with the Italians being more dedicated to developing their colony in the north and the British ruling with a more hands-off approach. At the tail end of World War 2 and the middle of the cold war, Somalia gained independence in 1960. The divded colonial history, however, had huge underpinnings for most of the country’s problems the country faces today.

Shortly after independence Somalia was the iron-fisted grips of General Mohammaed Said Barre, a significant political leader that ran a dictatorship from 1960 to 1991. Under his rule the civilians endured human rights violations and oppression. In January 1990, the Africa Watch Committee from the Human Rights Watch organization released a report called, “Somalia A Government At War with Its Own People,” detailing the extent of human rights violations under Barre including the detainment and toture of political opponents. The Ogaden campaign, Barre’s poltical campaign to regain Ogaden from Ethoopia, turned out to be unsuccessful, riling the public which led to further oprresion. By 1990, rising milita groups such as the Somali Salvation Demcoractic Front and the Somalia Patriotic Movememnt, banded together and Barre was removed from office by 1991.

Currently, Somalia has established a federal parliamentary republic with Mohammed Abduallhi Farmajo as the president. Farmajo faced food insecurtiy, poverty, disease outbreak, an unstable government, rising sectional tensions alongside growing violence such as Al-Shaaab, a militant group that promotes the unity of Islam and has recentaly gained momentum, AS WELL AS rampamt corruption.

Corruption is ESPICALLY damaging to developing countries like Somalia because the progress of development relies heavily upon the state’s capacity. Similarly, a state’s capacity and corruption are interrelated in that corruption is perputated and caused by a lower state capacity. In Somlia’s case, to show the extent of the state’s corruption, Kaunani Rahman from Transparency Internationl wrote, “corruption is both one of the leading causes and consequences of endemic political instability in Somlia, which has been ranked bottom of Transparancy International’s Corruption Perception Index every year since 2006,” (Rahamn pg. 1). Corruption in Somalia occurs at all levels, public and private. As one form of corruption, political corruption appears to be most the prominent. For instant, the government has had a problem with the misapprorporation of state funds. From 2013 to 2014 the Central Bank was involved in a public scandal where 80% of it’s withdrawls were being made my indidivuals for private gain. The money was used to garner political support, effectively creating a public distrust between not only the individual poltiicans, but the electoral process itself. “According to Adirazak Fartaag, former Somali govenremnt official, the new election system by which 14,000 representatives elected a parliament who in turned selected the president has spawned “corruption inflation” with some parliament seats reportedly going for more than $1 million,” (Rahaman pg. 4). Moreover, corruption in polticis effectively creates a distrust between Soamli’s cititzens and the gvoernemnt, destryongin the state’s capacity.

Next, corruption is PROMOINENT in business. Practices such as bribery and public procurement, where government contracts are being awarded to relatives, and tenders are usually private, reveal the extent of corruption in businesses and the private sector. Outside of political corruption and corruption in businesses, instances of the government directly affecting the state’s corruption can be seen in the example of the dire health conditions that weren’t fixed because of the privatization of healthcare provsisions. As another example, the Somali national army sysetematically inflates it’s troop numbers to receive greater funding. Both healthcare and secutiry ranking towards the top of the list of NEEDS.

The prevalvance of Somali’s corruption is not only caused by corruption itself, but is exxaerbated by it’s affects. Transparancy International points to the “absence of a strong functional central govenrmenet,” “lack of resources and adminitative cpacitiy,” and, “weak leadership strucutres,” as CONTINUING of Somali’s corruption.

On the other hand, to pinpoint the source of Somali’s rampant corruption, research points to employment. The civiv sector for example has low wages which, in turn, can encrouage petty corruption. Second, the imbalance of supply and demand economoically, provides the opportunity for corruption. Also, in many cases, economic and political gain overlap in that poltkicans are willing to reward people that benefit them economically in exchange for poltical power.

Others point to the region as cause for Somali’s rampant corruption. According to the SSRC (Space and Sceicne Research Center) for the Horn of Africa, the Horn of Africa is “…one fo the most complex and conflicted regions of the world. Each of the countries of the Horn-Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritera, Dijbouti and Sudan-suffers from protracted poltical strife, arising from local and national grievance, identity polticals and regional itner-state rivalaries,” (SSRC). As an overlapping explaination, the history of a violent and divded colonization in Somalia could also explain the problems that exsist in the state, that ultatemtely set the stage for it’s ramapant corruption.

The case of education being a source of corruption proves to be the strongest. Accorind to UNICEF (United Nation’s Internaiotnla Children’s Emergency Fund), “Somalia has one of the world’s lowest enrolment rates for primary school-aged children – only 30 per cent of children are in school and only 40 per cent of these are girls. Further, only 18 per cent of children in rural households are in school,” (UNICEF). Less of an education inevitably leads to a lower education on rights, particuallry civil rights. A Worldwide Governance Indicators test reported in 2016 by Transparacny Itnernationla, “of all six sub-categories, accountability was the highest performing with an aggregate score of 44,” (Rahaman pg. 3). At the same time, enrolment rates in school have increased due to intenraitonla aid and the govnerment’s launch of a “Go-2-School: educationing for resilience” intiativve. Additionally, the arugment of education also envelpts the arugment of employment because better education would lead to better jobs and wages ideally.

The government has also taken some intitaives to directly DECREASE it’s corruption. In fact, Somalia ratified the United Nation’s Convention Against Corruption that requires country’s to take-anti-corruption measures. In 2011 the government established the Anti-Corruption Commiteee. MORE ABOUT THIS .