When the Centre Doesn’t Hold: Imagining a Different Somalia

The impending expiration of the mandate of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) offers donors an opportunity to critically assess the state-building policies they have been pursuing in Somalia.

Building on contemporary notions of how Somali politics work, this brief aims to contribute to the 'what next?' debate by examining the emerging trend towards a more decentralized approach.

In the absence of a functioning central government, a variety of non-state actors have responded to the needs of the Somali people. Donors are right to try and build upon, rather than to work around, this reality. In order to be effective, however, such an approach would also require a fundamental reconsideration of how to engage with the TFG or a succeeding settlement at Somalia's centre.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background Information http://www.europeansources.info/record/the-eu-in-somalia-beyond-atalanta/

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