The Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) opened a field office in Somalia in November 2013 and has since provided much needed technical support and conducted capacity building initiatives in support of the electoral and peace process engaging with state and non-state actors

How it started

In February 2013 EISA deployed a fact-finding mission to Mogadishu to assess the political, social and security context and identify the gaps and needs of stakeholders in the areas of democracy and governance.

The mission was followed by the implementation of a four-year programme funded by Sweden and titled: Supporting Transition, Stability and Democratisation in Somalia. Following the success of the programme, which ran from 2014 to 2018, and was carried out in several regions of Somalia, Sweden has generously funded a second programme titled "Support Towards a Democratic, Unified and Peaceful Somalia - STAND UP SOMALIA".

Programme development and launch

Informed by the expressed needs and expectations from state and non-state actors that EISA has supported since 2013, the STAND UP Somalia commenced in January 2019 and will run until June 2021.

STAND UP Somalia aims to support state actors, the 2020/2021 electoral process, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), and enhance the participation of women, youth and the citizenry at large in the political processes.

Programme objectives

The five project outcomes, and associated outputs, that are expected to contribute to achieving the impact of the programme:

1. Equipping State actors to contribute to the democratisation process and state stability;
2. Supporting CSOs to understand their role in promoting accountable governance and how to influence the peace building process;
3. Strengthening the capacity of Somali women to engage in public and political affairs;
4. Enhancing the capacity of political parties to build democratic and well-organised internal structures and policies; and
5. Supporting electoral stakeholders to contribute effectively towards transparent, peaceful and inclusive electoral processes.

Programme activities

STAND UP Somalia will conduct its activities in all Federal Member States and Banadir administration region. All activities will be rolled out with a special focus on women and youth to encourage gender mainstreaming amongst stakeholders and expose the Somali youth to the political processes.

Past Achievements

Notable project achievements with the past programme include the following:

• Caretaker Administrations for the newly accessible areas have been established and supported in laying the foundations for the District Councils in Federal Member States;
• The Ministry of Constitutional Affairs (MoCA) has a strategic plan in place which continues to guide its outreach campaign on the constitution-making process. Through its National Consultative Forums (NCF), MoCA was also able to engage with the broader citizenry to gather their views on electoral options in the 2016 electoral process and beyond;
• Young women project beneficiaries elected to parliament in the 2016 elections. One of them serving on the IGAD parliament; and
• Since 2014 EISA has been one of the main partners of the three National Constitutional Review Bodies tasked with the constitutional review process, namely, MoCA the Parliamentary Oversight Committee (OC), and the Independent Constitutional Review & Implementation Commission (ICRIC).

To achieve its outcomes, the EISA Somalia office is under the leadership of Mr Mukenyi Badibanga, the Acting Country Director and supported by skilled local and international staff.

Contact EISA Somalia

Privacy Policy
Mukenyi Badibanga - Country Director - mukenyi[at]eisa.org.za
Villa 1, Tacforce International, Waberi District, Airport Road, Mogadishu
Mobile Somalia: +252 61 250 4809, Mobile Kenya: +254 79 090 8544

Donors

EISA Somalia is funded by Sweden (through the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and by Finn Church Aid.

EISA Somalia

PEACE project

Support for peaceful elections
Women in elections and governance
Electoral Situation Room

Local Governance

• Civic dialogue
• District Council formation

Stand Up Somalia

• Stakeholder dialogue/
  Public engagement
• CSO capacity building
• Let's talk elections
• Electoral Commission
• Women, youth & marginalised
• Political parties
• Citizen observation

Past work