GEOPOLITICAL CASE

STUDIES

SOMALILAND
MEMBERS:
PCOL MARIO CORTES
PCOL APRIL MARK YOUNG
PLTCOL RONALYN COLITA
PLTCOL STEFANIO ANDRENICUS A RABINO
 SOMALILAND

Somaliland is situated in the northwest of recognised Somalia. It lies between 08°N and 11°30'N, and between
42°30'E and 49°00'E.[42] It is bordered by Djibouti to the west, Ethiopia to the south, and Somalia to the east.
Somaliland has an 850 kilometres (528 mi) coastline with the majority lying along the Gulf of Aden.[218]: 1  In terms of
landmass, Somaliland has an area of 176,120 km2 (68,000 sq mi).[12]
Republic of Somaliland (Somali: Jamhuuriyadda
Soomaaliland, Arabic: ‫جمهورية صوماليالند‬
Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd), is a de facto sovereign
state in the Horn of Africa, considered
internationally to be part of Somalia.[8][9][10]
Somaliland lies in the Horn of Africa, on the
southern coast of the Gulf of Aden. It is
bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, Ethiopia
to the south and west, and the uncontested
part of Somalia to the east.[11] Its claimed
territory has an area of 176,120 square
kilometres (68,000 sq mi),[12] with
approximately 5.7 million residents as of 2021.
[6] The capital and largest city is Hargeisa. The
government of Somaliland regards itself as the
successor state to British Somaliland, which, as
the briefly independent State of Somaliland,
united in 1960 with the Trust Territory of
Somaliland (the former Italian Somaliland) to
form the Somali Republic.[13]
 Historical Background
• Somaliland’s history as a distinct region of Somalia dates back to the late 1800s.
The territory was a British protectorate until 1960, when it unified with the rest of
present-day Somalia, which had been under Italian rule. The merger faced
challenges early on, with many in Somaliland rejecting the centralization of power
in the country’s south.
• A rebel group, the Somali National Movement (SNM), emerged in Somaliland in
the 1980s opposing the military junta of President Siad Barre, which seized power
in 1969. In January 1991, SNM and other insurgent groups ousted Barre, whose
forces had killed tens of thousands of Somalilanders [PDF] and destroyed much of
the region’s infrastructure. SNM refused to recognize an interim government led by
another militia group, and that May it declared Somaliland’s independence, with the
city of Hargeisa as capital.
Relevant Issues on SOMALILAND
Issue on Independence
• It took delegates a decade to thrash out a new constitution for
Somaliland, which voters overwhelmingly approved in 2001. The
referendum saw a transition from a power-sharing agreement among
leading clans to a multiparty democracy. Although some international
observers applauded the peaceful vote [PDF], no government
recognized the process.
Somaliland’s Financial Situation
• A weak economy and limited opportunities for foreign trade and
investment have stifled the government’s capacity to provide services
to its approximately four million residents. Somaliland has a gross
domestic product (GDP) of about $2 billion, most of which it receives
in remittances from Somalilanders working abroad. Its main export is
livestock, which it ships to neighboring Djibouti and Ethiopia, as well
as to Gulf states, such as Saudi Arabia and Oman. Its GDP per capita,
in the hundreds of dollars, is one of the lowest in the world.
Is there international support for Somaliland’s independence?

• Many countries have encouraged the breakaway state’s elections and

economic development, but none have recognized Somaliland. Some
experts say the African Union would have to be the first to do so. “The
United States and the UN and all of their allies have worked hard to
try to build up the AU and position it as a moral authority,” says
Bruton.
What is Somaliland’s strategic
importance?
• Somaliland is positioned along the Gulf of Aden near the entrance to
the Bab al-Mandeb, a major sea-lane through which almost 
one-third of the world’s shipping passes. Its location has helped the
government attract new trade and development deals. 
Somaliland’s Present Situation
• Today Somaliland has a defined—though contested—territory, an elected
government that provides some services to its people, a civilian police
force and professional army, and its own currency and license plates.
Although lack of international recognition remains an acute problem, in
all practical respects it is a functioning sovereign state.

• Somaliland’s relatively peaceful transition carries with it painful

reminders of the devastation suffered under the Barre regime.  In the
late 1990s, flooding unearthed evidence of mass graves in and around
Hargeisa, leading to cries for accountability and the establishment of a
government War Crimes Investigation Commission.
References:
• Council on Foreign Relations
https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/somaliland-horn-africas-breakawa
y-state

• Google Map
https://www.google.com/search?q=somaliland+map&rlz=1C5CHFA_e
nPH1010PH1011&oq=SOMALILAND+MAP&aqs=chrome.0.35i39j0i20i
263i512j0i512l8.4401j0j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=LI3Hb
kiFdizUSM

• Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somaliland
 END

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