Distinguished Chairperson,

Excellencies, Members of the AUPSC,

Distinguished Guests,

Thank you for the opportunity to brief the AU PSC to commemorate one year of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia. I would like to start by highlighting the overall progress achieved in Somalia in the past year, with notable progress on the political, security and economic fronts. The post-election national priorities have been advanced, including regular meetings of the National Consultative Council, progress in the fight against Al-Shabaab, and initial agreements reached towards finalizing the constitutional review process.

The completion of the constitutional review process remains critical to further advance the state-building agenda, and we urge all stakeholders to accelerate efforts towards this objective based on an inclusive and consensus-based process. The views of women, youth, and marginalized groups also have to be reflected, and their rights safeguarded in the constitution and respective legislative frameworks. Close collaboration between the Federal Government of Somalia and the Federal Member States remain vital to further advance the key national priorities and for stakeholders to continue working together and resolve disagreements through dialogue and compromise.

Chairperson,

I would like to stress the progress made in the fight against Al-Shabaab, with the recent military offensives having recovered a number of localities in Galmudug and HirShabelle. The United Nations, jointly with partners, is working to assist Government led stabilization activities in the newly recovered areas to support a comprehensive approach encompassing reconciliation, establishing governance structures and service delivery. We urge partners to provide additional resources and provide financing for stabilization activities, which are critical for long-term sustainable solutions.

However, we are concerned by the continued fighting in Las Anood, Sool region, including the impact of the fighting on the civilian population. The United Nations strongly condemns the violence and calls for an immediate ceasefire and for unhindered humanitarian access to urgently address the needs of those displaced and impacted.

Chairperson,

The joint AU-FGS-EU-UN technical assessment on the progress achieved against the security transition benchmarks will be shared with the UN Security Council by 30 April. We would like to express our appreciation to the African Union, Federal Government of Somalia, the European Union, and partners for the close collaboration throughout the exercise. The report will inform the deliberations on the ATMIS/UNSOS mandate renewal in June. With the anticipated withdrawal of 2,000 ATMIS troops in June, and another 3,000 in September, sustained joint operational planning and coordination, between ATMIS, the Federal Government of Somalia, and UNSOS, remains vital to ensure an effective handover and the protection of the population in the affected areas.

We are deeply concerned by the continued funding shortfall for ATMIS, despite the calls by the African Union and the United Nations, most notably the high-level AU-UN events on ATMIS financing. It remains essential for the international community to provide sufficient, sustainable, and predictable funding for ATMIS until the end of the security transition to ensure the mission can fulfil its mandate. Moreover, adequate resourcing for the Somali security forces, including through the UNSOS-administered Trust Fund, is also required to ensure the conditions are in place for an effective and sustainable security transition.

We urge international partners to continue to support the Trust Fund and to work with the Somali Security Forces to develop their own logistical capability, including by addressing capacity gaps which impede the success of the security transition.

Chairperson,

I would like to conclude by commending the work of ATMIS in the past year and the critical role it played in supporting Somalia. I wish to pay tribute to ATMIS and the Somali Security Forces, noting that their commitment to the country’s peace and stability has come at the cost of significant sacrifices.

I would also like to emphasize that the United Nations-African Union partnership remains strong in Somalia – and we look forward to the continued close cooperation of both organizations in the period ahead - to ensure Somalia is best supported.

Thank you for your attention.