 | |
| Founded | 2013 |
|---|---|
| Type | Political institute |
| Location | |
Key people | Director Afyare Elmi |
| Website | heritageinstitute |
The Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS) is a think tank based in Mogadishu, Somalia.
| | |
| Founded | 2013 |
|---|---|
| Type | Political institute |
| Location | |
Key people | Director Afyare Elmi |
| Website | heritageinstitute |
The Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS) is a think tank based in Mogadishu, Somalia.
The Heritage Institute for Policy Studies is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan research center which aims to inform and influence public policy and practice through field-based research, informed analysis and innovative solutions in the form of reports, policy briefs and public debates.
Established in Mogadishu, [1] Somalia in January 2013, the HIPS has begun writing reports and policy papers to advise the nascent Somali government, international organizations, and other local actors. In its first six months, HIPS has provided commentary and guidance on topics as diverse as educational opportunities in Somalia, displaced nationals, and domestic diplomatic initiatives in Kismayo and the self-declared state of Somaliland. [2] Notable speakers include Asha Haji Elmi, Mohamed Nur "Tarzan" and Mohamed Ali Ameriko.
As part of its mission, the HIPS will also promote a culture of learning and research in Somalia. It aims to do so by launching a series of public libraries across the country, organizing summer book fairs and offering research courses and fellowships to postgraduate students and aspiring researchers. [3]
HIPS is headed by Afyare Elmi. [4]
In 2013, the UN Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group alleged in a report that HIPS and its Director Abdi Aynte were complicit in financial mismanagement by Somali government officials. [5] The Heritage Institute published an official response on its website, where it dismissed the allegations as false and suggested that the claims undermined the UN's commitment to transparency, accountability and integrity. [6]
On July 27, 2023 a renowned SSC-Khatumo activist, Mohamoud Gaildon, urged SSC activists and leaders not to attend the Heritage Institute annual symposium in Djibouti scheduled for October. He cited the institute's track record on the Somaliland question, expressing concerns about its stance on the preservation of Somali unity and sovereignty. Gaildon also criticized Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, accusing him of being a key ally of Muse Bihi and providing support to Somaliland forces in Las Anod with ammunition and access to international arms markets. [7]
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. The country was an important centre for commerce with the rest of the ancient world, and according to most scholars, it is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient Land of Punt. During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali states and port towns dominated the regional trade, the Mogadishu Sultanate and Ajuran Sultanate both centered around the port town Mogadishu, but also the port towns of Barawe and Merca.
The Somali Armed Forces are the military forces of the Federal Republic of Somalia. Headed by the president as commander-in-chief, they are constitutionally mandated to ensure the nation's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.
The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa. Located on the easternmost part of the African mainland, it is the fourth largest peninsula in the world. It is composed of Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia and Djibouti; broader definitions also include parts or all of Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, and Uganda. The term Greater Horn Region (GHR) can additionally include Burundi, Rwanda, and Tanzania. It lies along the southern boundary of the Red Sea and extends hundreds of kilometres into the Guardafui Channel, Gulf of Aden, and Indian Ocean and shares a maritime border with the Arabian Peninsula of Western Asia.
Somali National University (SNU) is a national university in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. Its campus grounds were located four kilometers from the Mogadishu International Airport. It was established in 1971, but was "officially" founded in 1954. It closed in 1990. After closing down for a number of years, the university reopened in August 2014.
The Isaaq is an ethnic group in Somaliland. It is one of the major tribes in the Horn of Africa, with a large and densely populated traditional territories.
The Somali Civil War is an ongoing civil war that is taking place in Somalia. It grew out of resistance to the military junta which was led by Siad Barre during the 1980s. From 1988 to 1990, the Somali Armed Forces began engaging in combat against various armed rebel groups, including the Somali Salvation Democratic Front in the northeast, the Somali National Movement in the northwest, and the United Somali Congress in the south. The clan-based armed opposition groups overthrew the Barre government in 1991.
The Islamic Courts Union was a legal and political organization formed to address the lawlessness that had gripped Somalia since the fall of the Siad Barre regime in 1991 during the Somali Civil War.
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed is a Somali politician who served as President of Somalia from 2009 to 2012. He is the founder and leader of Himilo Qaran political party and also the founder and head of the Forum for National Parties of Somalia. He is the chairperson of the Council of Presidential Candidates of Somalia.
The Transitional Federal Government (TFG) was internationally recognized as a provisional government of the Republic of Somalia from 14 October 2004 until 20 August 2012, when its tenure officially ended and the Federal Government of Somalia was inaugurated.
The Central Bank of Somalia (CBS) is the monetary authority of Somalia. Somalia has struggled to reestablish a functioning state since the collapse of an authoritarian regime in 1991. Somalia has been cited as a real-world example of an anarchist stateless society and a country with no formal legal system. The Transitional Federal Government, formed in 2004, was recognized as the central government of Somalia. Among other duties, it is in charge of ensuring financial stability, maintaining the internal and external value of the local currency, and promoting credit and exchange conditions that facilitate the balanced growth of the national economy. Within the scope of its powers, it also contributes to the financial and economic policies of the State.
The Somali Rebellion was the beginning of the civil war in Somalia that occurred in the 1980s and early 1990s. The rebellion started in 1986 when President Siad Barre began using his special forces, the "Red Berets", to attack clan-based dissident groups opposed to his regime.
Over the course of the Somali Civil War, there have been many revolutionary movements and militia groups run by competing rebel leaders which have held de facto control over vast areas within Somalia.
Italian Somalis are Somali-born citizens who are fully or partially of Italian descent, whose ancestors were Italians who emigrated to Somalia during the Italian diaspora, or Italian-born people in Somalia. Most of the Italians moved to Somalia during the Italian colonial period.
Khatumo State, officially the Khatumo State of Somalia, is a state government active in the early 2010s succeeding the SSC Movement. Centred on the Sool, Sanaag regions and the Buuhoodle district of Togdheer region, its leaders declared the territory an autonomous state in 2012.
Matthew Bryden is a Canadian political analyst active in the Horn of Africa. He worked for several aid and political organizations in Somalia after spending some time in the region during his leave from the Canadian military in 1987. He served as the Coordinator for the Monitoring Group Eritrea (EMG) from 2008-2012. He is now a Director at Sahan Research, a think tank based in Nairobi.
Abdisalam Omer Hadliye, also known as Abdisalan Hadliye Omar, is a Somali economist and politician. He was previously a Chief of Staff at the Executive Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia, a Director of the UNDP Somalia Financial Services and Governance Program, and a Chief Business Officer for the District of Columbia Public Schools. He also served as Governor of the Central Bank of Somalia in 2013. He served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Somalia from 27 February 2015 to 29 March 2017.
The Ministry of Finance, abbreviated MOF, is a ministry of the Government of Somalia that is charged with the responsibility for government expenditure and revenue raising. The ministry's role is to develop economic policy and prepare the federal budget. The Ministry of Finance also oversees financial legislation and regulation. Each year in October, the Minister of Finance presents the Somali federal budget to the Parliament.
The Daljir Party was a liberal political party in Somalia. It developed from the tradition of socially conservative Islamism, but officially abandoned this ideology in favour of "conservative democracy".
Events in the year 2022 in Somalia.
According to Afyare Elmi, head of the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies, a think-tank in Mogadishu, Robow's