Somalia takes over a diplomatic role the UN held for decades
MOGADISHU — Somalia’s federal government will now take the lead in bringing political rivals and federal member states to the negotiating table, a role UN envoys helped fill for decades. The UN Transitional Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNTMIS) closed on 31 October after a two-year handover requested by the Somali government. UN agencies will continue their humanitarian and development work in the country.
The closure ends more than three decades of successive UN missions supporting peace and reconciliation in Somalia. The most recent phase began in 2013, when Somali authorities were rebuilding national institutions after years of conflict. UN officials helped federal and state leaders negotiate electoral arrangements, advised election officials and monitored abuses against civilians. UNTMIS took over in 2024 with a mandate to transfer those responsibilities.
An early test for Somali political leaders
Somali institutions, UN agencies and the UN Support Office in Somalia have divided the outgoing mission’s duties under a joint agreement. For political leaders, the practical change is clearest when Mogadishu and the federal member states disagree over elections. Successive UN missions had helped convene those discussions and find terms the parties could accept. Somali leaders now carry greater responsibility for keeping those talks open.
At the closing ceremony on 27 October, mission chief Raisedon Zenenga welcomed President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s public invitation to political stakeholders to begin talks. Whether that invitation brings competing leaders to the table will be an early measure of how political dialogue works after the handover.
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