SGEM held a forum titled Somalia’s Indirect Elections: Legitimacy and Inclusivity through its Forum for Solutions on February 26, 2022, as a follow-up to Somalia’s indirect election which after considerable delay was marred with conflict towards women parliamentary candidates, violations of the agreed-upon electoral process, and corruption. The Panelists included some of the Somali leaders, legal and topic experts, and researchers including Hanifa M. Ibrahim, Minister of Women and Human Rights Development, Dr. Afyare Elmi, Executive Director of Heritage Institute for Policy Studies, Dr. Ahmed Ali M. Khayre, Legal Consultant, Senior Lecturer and Researcher, and Dr. Shukria Dini, Executive Director of Somali Women Studies Centre, and a member of Goodwill Ambassadors.
In this forum, the panelists assessed from a legal, practical perspective the state of the 2021-2022 indirect elections, the overall agreements of the National Consultative Council for the electoral process including the 30 percent quota for women, and to what extent these agreements were implemented. The main challenges and concerns regarding the 2021 indirect elections were discussed. Panelists further compared the 2016 and 2021 indirect elections concluding that the 2016 indirect election was more legitimate and inclusive.
Panelists also highlighted the factors that made it difficult to achieve the minimum 30 percent quota, the procedural irregularities of the electoral process, and some of the ramifications regarding legitimacy and credibility. The panel concluded with recommendations for this upcoming parliament and the next electoral cycle and government.
