The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Koro Bessho (Japan):
The members of the Security Council welcomed the successful conclusion of the Somalia Security Conference and the inaugural Somalia Partnership Forum in Mogadishu on 4 and 5 December. The members of the Security Council recognized the international community’s strong engagement across both events, and noted the renewed commitment of the Federal Government and the Federal Member States of Somalia to work together towards peace, stability and economic development in Somalia.
The members of the Security Council welcomed the commitments in both communiqués including those to implement the National Security Architecture fully and without delay, and accelerate planning to enable a phased and realistic, conditions-based transition from African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) to Somali-led security.
The members of the Security Council welcomed the commitment by the federal Government of Somalia, the Federal Member States, African Union, United Nations, European Union and all international partners to accelerate coordinated work on a transition plan, and acknowledged that this is a historic opportunity to build on political and security progress since 2012 and maintain positive momentum from the London Somalia Conference in May 2017.
The members of the Security Council paid tribute to the contribution of AMISOM, the Somali national security forces, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) and United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) in achieving a more peaceful and stable Somalia and expressed their respect for the service of military and police personnel and the troop- and police‑contributing countries to AMISOM, as well as for the significant sacrifices made by AMISOM and Somali forces for their efforts in reducing the threat posed by Al-Shabaab. The members of the Security Council welcomed the commitment of the international partners to support a conditions-based transition plan with clear target dates and benchmarks, and reiterated the importance of considering the full range of options available in order to establish secure future funding arrangements for AMISOM.
The members of the Security Council underlined the importance of further developing Somalia’s political settlement, including by implementing agreed plans to complete the constitutional review and to prepare for one-person, one‑vote elections in 2020-2021 in an inclusive manner, and highlighted the need to implement the 5 November agreement between the Federal Government of Somalia and the Federal Member States. The members of the Security Council noted improvements on economic and financial management, and emphasised the importance of redoubling efforts in these areas to support reengagement with the international financial institutions, mobilize investment and create the conditions for lasting peace, security and prosperity.
The members of the Security Council reiterated the importance of implementing Somalia’s National Strategy and Action Plan for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism in order to strengthen Somalia’s capacity to prevent and counter terrorism and welcomed the recognition by Somali leaders that the roles of youth, women and local reconciliation efforts are key to durable peace.
The members of the Security Council emphasized the need to heed calls for an early response to continued humanitarian needs in 2018 and underlined the importance of increasing work to build Somalia’s resilience to the recurrent cycle of drought.
The members of the Security Council called on the Federal Government of Somalia, the Federal Member States, the international community and friends and partners of Somalia to work together to ensure that the implementation of the commitments made are realized without delay, so that the Federal Government of Somalia and the Federal Member States deliver more peace, more stability, and more prosperity for the people of Somalia in 2018.
