JidbaaleThe United Kingdom has declared an extra £7.5 million in financing for the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), raising its total commitment to £77 million since 2021.
The UK’s contribution will provide stipends for personnel from Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda, who constitute the core of ATMIS’s work.
Mike Nithavrianakis, the British Ambassador to Somalia, underscored the UK’s enduring commitment to Somalia’s stability and development. “By endorsing ATMIS, we are investing in Somalia’s current security as well as its future stability and prosperity,” he said. Nithavrianakis advocated for more international assistance, encouraging both conventional and unconventional allies to contribute to Somalia’s security efforts.
Somalia’s Defense Minister, Abdikadir Mohamed Nur, commended the UK’s assistance, asserting, “This funding is essential for bolstering the initiatives of ATMIS and Somali security forces.” We really value the UK’s ongoing collaboration as we strive to reconstruct a safer and more secure Somalia.
As part of a phased disengagement strategy, we plan to complete ATMIS (African Union Transition Mission in Somalia) by December 2024, transferring responsibility to the Somali National Army (SNA) and local troops. The transition will conclude with the establishment of the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) in January 2025.
AUSSOM will continue in its assistance for Somali security forces, but with a reduced number of around 11,000 soldiers, concentrating on urban security and infrastructure safeguarding. Its objective is to enhance Somalia’s ability to govern its own security while reducing the possibility of a power vacuum that al-Shabab may exploit.
