Chapter V. SOMALILAND SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Framing the Somaliland Special Arrangement
Somaliland’s unique development trajectory has evolved out of a process of more than 20 years of
grassroots peacebuilding and statebuilding, forged in relative isolation from other development
contexts characterising the region. Over time, a complex and resilient institutional structure has
taken shape in which modern institutions, traditional and religious authorities, the private sector and
civil society work together in order to effectively ensure peace, stability, freedom against piracy and
terrorism, economic growth, the delivery of basic services, the protection of livelihoods and social
development. Since the ratification of the Somaliland Constitution by popular referendum in 2001,
Somaliland’s development path has been led by five democratically-elected governments, with the
House of Elders (Guurti) playing a traditionally-mandated role in maintaining peace, order and
cultural integrity.
The Somaliland Special Arrangement lays out a way forward for institutionalising on-going
Somaliland processes and initiatives within an overarching and equal partnership between the
Somaliland government, its people and the international community. It is underpinned by a need to
protect and build upon Somaliland’s development gains, as a means for maintaining and expanding
upon security and economic prosperity throughout the Horn of Africa. The Somaliland Special
Arrangement represents an important element of a larger shift in approach to development partner
engagement.
The Somaliland Special Arrangement is a separate and distinct part of the Somali Compact. The
Somaliland Special Arrangement is the sole framework for engaging with Somaliland’s development
process under the New Deal partnership. The simultaneous endorsement of the New Deal principles
was conducted in the spirit of the 13 April Ankara Communiqué signed by the Government of
Somaliland and the Federal Government of Somalia as part of their on-going dialogue process, in
which the two sides agreed to work together to encourage greater and more effective international
development assistance. While the two arrangements were developed through separate processes
and will be implemented using separate government systems and mechanisms, their concurrent and
mutually reinforcing implementation will help to ensure greater cooperation, trust and goodwill
between all Somali people.
Somaliland’s Vision 2030 and the Somaliland Special Arrangement
The Somaliland Special Arrangement is based on Somaliland’s Vision 2030. It has been developed
under the leadership of the Somaliland Ministry of National and Planning and Development (MoNPD)
in consultations with Somaliland stakeholders, including the National Planning Commission (NPC),
line Ministries, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and implementing partners.
The overall vision, as outlined in the Somaliland Vision 2030, is to create “A Stable, Democratic and
Prosperous Somaliland Where the People Enjoy a High Quality of Life.
As the Vision 2030 states, “The government is determined to achieve economic prosperity and social
wellbeing for its people while consolidating the nation’s accomplishments in building stability,
maintaining security and developing democratic institutions. Our aim is to create an empowering
environment where all citizens feel that they have a stake and a role to play in national
development.” The Vision 2030 sets out a roadmap to:
• Enable Somaliland to take ownership of its development agenda;
• Inspire Somaliland and its leadership to mobilise resources and overcome development
challenges to attain a higher standard of living;
• Guide development partners to align their assistance with Somaliland’s priorities and aspirations;
• Provide a framework upon which Somaliland´s strategies and implementation plans will be
anchored.
In order to make progress towards the Vision 2030, a five year development plan for Somaliland for
the period 2012-2016 was developed through a challenging, but rewarding process, which involved
consultations across different stakeholder groups, including government and non-state actors,
central and regional actors. The overall objective of the plan is to address and overcome the
structural and institutional development constraints which Somaliland faces, and to achieve social
and economic transformation towards the attainment of national prosperity.
The pillars of Somaliland's Development Plan correspond to the five Peace and Statebuilding Goals
(PSGs) of the New Deal in the following manner: the Governance Pillar corresponds to PSG 1
(Inclusive Politics), PSG 2 (Security) and PSG 3 (Justice); the Economic, Infrastructure and
Environment Pillars correspond to PSG 4 (Economic Foundations); and the Social Pillar corresponds
to PSG 5 (Revenue and Services).
The priorities and corresponding milestones covered within these five PSG areas were derived
directly from a wide range of assessments and evaluations conducted by the government and
international partners over the past several years. In developing the Somaliland Special
Arrangement, these assessments were consolidated and taken into consideration through a PSG lens
by those Somaliland government and civil society representatives leading the Somaliland Special
Arrangement drafting process. Somaliland has been fortunate enough to draw on extensive prior
background material, including a number of sector strategies and assessments, which are already
structured to address the overall development framework—the Somaliland development plan—and
has informed the Somaliland Special Arrangement.
The pillars of Somaliland's Development Plan correspond to the five Peace and Statebuilding Goals
(PSGs) of the New Deal in the following manner: the Governance Pillar corresponds to PSG 1
(Inclusive Politics), PSG 2 (Security) and PSG 3 (Justice); the Economic, Infrastructure and
Environment Pillars correspond to PSG 4 (Economic Foundations); and the Social Pillar corresponds
to PSG 5 (Revenue and Services).
The priorities and corresponding milestones covered within these five PSG areas were derived
directly from a wide range of assessments and evaluations conducted by the government and
international partners over the past several years. In developing the Somaliland Special
Arrangement, these assessments were consolidated and taken into consideration through a PSG lens
by those Somaliland government and civil society representatives leading the Somaliland Special
Arrangement drafting process. Somaliland has been fortunate enough to draw on extensive prior
background material, including a number of sector strategies and assessments, which are already
structured to address the overall development framework—the Somaliland development plan—and
has informed the Somaliland Special Arrangement.
Approach to the Somaliland Special Arrangement
The Somaliland Special Arrangement will serve as a strategic framework for development partners to
engage with identified priority areas of Somaliland’s development plan. As a living document, the
Somaliland Special Arrangement highlights targeted milestones that are specific enough to guide
policy dialogue, project development and planning, while allowing enough flexibility for a changing
contextual environment.
The Somaliland Special Arrangement will also provide the framework for improving international
assistance to Somaliland by setting out a set of partnership principles, preferred financing modalities
and mechanisms for coordination and monitoring. 22
Prioritisation and programming efforts currently underway to implement the Somaliland
development plan, will serve as the starting point for kick-starting implementation under the New
Deal framework. Further dialogue and planning will take place through the mechanism identified in
the Somaliland Special Arrangement, in order to translate strategic priorities and milestones outlined
in the document into concrete and tangible results.
http://www.somalia-newdeal-conference.e ... ompact.pdf
