Maintaining TFG's Cohesion and support is an absolute necessity
The recent activities and decisions by the African Union Summit in Kampala, and by IGAD, both at the Summit and at its Executive Council meeting at the beginning of July, have shown the commitment of the continent and the region to assist the endeavours of the government of Somalia to bring peace and reconciliation to the country. These efforts were reinforced by a US organized meeting on Somalia in Kampala, attended by the leaders of Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda, the UN and the AU Commission, and by representatives of the partner countries.
All the decisions taken by the AU, IGAD and others now need to be consolidated and reflected in a concrete way on the ground. As Prime Minister Meles clearly indicated during the meeting, organized by the US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, Johnnie Carson, unless the TFG is assisted in a concrete and coordinated way, there can be no sustainable solution for Somalia. Donors have given millions of dollars to Somalia but much has gone through numerous NGOs and international organizations whose administrative and other costs consume up to 70% of the total amount provided. These beneficiaries of the Somalia crises should not be allowed to continue to use Somalia as an income generation scheme. The international community should assist Somalia directly with effective mechanisms put in place to provide for full accountability. Certainly, there is a need to design a mechanism for the government to account for every penny received from the international community. This would avoid the inefficiency of international agencies and NGOs and the improper consumption of funds intended for Somalia. There is certainly a need to provide support to the TFG itself.
IGAD’s decisions at the Summit level, on how to assist the TFG, have now been worked out in detail thorough the IGAD Chiefs of Defence Staff who met in Addis Ababa just prior to the Kampala Summit. These plans will be implemented as soon as the AU and the international community can produce the necessary funds and logistics that are required for the deployment of another 2,000 troops, most probably from Uganda and other countries, to reinforce AMISOM.
One of the most crucial issues that the TFG leadership must now deal with is to throw off its lethargy, and get to work to start carrying out the provision of services to the people of Somalia in the areas they can reach. They must put an end to their disputes, quarrels and petty squabbles. The infighting has to stop, and the TFG needs to focus on defeating the real enemy, Al-Shabaab, by all means available to it, on gaining the assistance of the international community and on appealing to the people of Somalia to isolate Al-Shabaab. The TFG leadership now needs to be very determined to put its house in order. Time is running out, as even the TFG itself must realize. The TFG’s proper handling of itself is a necessary requirement for the support that comes from those who remain concerned and prepared to assist the people of Somalia to escape from the quagmire in which they find themselves today. The TFG needs to take these measures without delay if it is to get support from the international community. Cohesion among the leadership of the TFG is a critical and an absolute necessity; and its absence will put the existence of the country in jeopardy.