SOMALIA, SOMALILAND AND PUNTLAND

Since 1960, the UN has described Somalia as a single federal nation with a capital city, Mogadishu, and a population of just over 16 million. However, the reality is much more complicated. In 1991, a territory approximating to the former British Protectorate of Somaliland declared unilateral independence as the Republic of Somaliland, its capital the city of Hargeisa. The breakaway state’s improved security and economic progress have since contrasted starkly with the travails of greater Somalia. While no foreign power recognises its sovereignty, Somaliland is self-governing, with an independent government and democratic elections. It has its own currency and its own military. Elections in the region have been observed and praised by international partners, including the EU. Later, in 1998, the region of Puntland, situated in northeastern Somalia and centred around the town of Garoowe, also declared itself an autonomous state, although it remained within Somalia’s federal structure. These errant regions account for a population of around six million people. There are also many Somali people outside of Somalia; including Djibouti (formerly French Somaliland), Ethiopia and Kenya, the Horn of Africa is host to more than 25 million people who describe themselves as Somalis.