Somalia and Anarchy
by Jim Davidson
(to table of contents of archives)
(to start of essay)
Jim Davidson is the Executive
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Awdal Roads Company, which
is pursuing business opportunities in the Awdal region of Somalia. Professor
Jan Narveson asked him to reply to some of Terry Maratos-Flier’s comments
that appeared on a mailing list for liberty-minded professors. Owing to
his uncertainty about having Terry Maratos-Flier’s permission, Davidson
removed Terry Maratos-Flier’s text entirely from his response. Davidson
copied the Awdal@yahoogroups.com mailing list in the hope that his remarks
might be useful to a wider audience. Roy Halliday saw these remarks on
that mailing list, thought they would be of interest to Formulations readers,
and got Davidson’s permission to reprint them here. We have replaced the
preface and added headings. Otherwise the text is unchanged.—Ed.
Outline
introduction
Census Information
and the Population of Somalia
Warlords
Uranium
Goatherds, Land Ownership,
Oil Companies, and the State
Visiting Somalia Safely
Getting Permission
to Mine in Somalia
Leasing Land versus
Buying It
Extortion
Military Invasion
The Cost of Living
in Somalia
The Somali Constitution
and Freedom
Legal Recourse and
Rights
The Somalian State
Visit Awdal
Anarchy
Misinformation about
Somalia on the Worldwide Web
In 1991, the Democratic Republic of Somalia ceased to exist. The dictator, Siad Barré, was overthrown. His government was removed from power, and no successor government was installed in its place. Taxes ceased to be collected. Regulatory agencies ceased to regulate. Payments on the dictator's foreign debt ceased to be made. And there was much rejoicing.
During the course of the celebrations that followed, radio stations in Mogadishu broadcast the message that nobody was certain what to do next, so it might be a good idea if everyone returned to the villages and towns and cities from whence they came. A great many did.
Since that time, thirteen different "peace conferences" have attempted to create a new government for all of Somalia. Thus far, all of them have failed. The UN and the USA were unsuccessful in their nation-building efforts in 1992–1995, and, although they destroyed thousands of Somali lives, and spent many American lives and much treasure, still, no Somalia-spanning government is collecting taxes, enforcing regulations, imprisoning and torturing dissidents, or doing any of those things for which vast, central governments are known. Since 1991, the principals of Awdal Roads Company have been investigating, and since July 2000 actively pursuing business opportunities in the region.
Census Information and the Population of Somalia
Among the things which Somalis have noticed in their experience with colonialism under British, French, and Italian authorities, with democracy from 1960 to 1969 and with dictatorship favoring communism until 1978 and "federalism" thereafter (owing to a lack of enthusiasm on the part of the Soviet Union for the Somali side of the Somali-Ethiopian war to recover Ogaden and Western Awdal) was the curious thing about census takers. A census would be taken, and then the people would be taxed. So, census takers have had difficulty with many parts of Somalia. I have been told that census takers have been killed to prevent them from taking census information back to various governments, especially in colonial times. There is a good deal of evidence that census figures were never accumulated for British Somaliland with anything like scientific rigor. But, hey, it's good enough for government work. <smile>
However, based on a variety of information resources at our disposal, and owing to our business interests in the matter we've done quite a lot of investigation on this point, we have estimated that the world population of Somalis is about 15 million. These include millions living in Ethiopia, a few hundred thousand in Djibouti, quite a few hundred thousand more in Kenya, and well over 8 million in the various parts of what was once the Democratic Republic of Somalia. About a million Somalis are dispersed around the world owing to the Diaspora which followed the 1978 war with Ethiopia, a war which itself created a million refugees, and which prompted the war for independence which led to the ouster of the dictator. So, the figure of 6 million for the population of Somalia is not especially accurate. I don't agree with it.
It has been a very long time since 70% of Somalia was nomadic herdsmen. That figure may date to 1960, as it is in close agreement with some figures from an anthropology book of that timeframe. In my experience, a much larger percentage of the population is now settled. Based on information available to us from various sources, as much as 75% of the population can be found in towns, cities, and villages. A third of these townsfolk do have herds and may spend part of their time in the fields.
The city of Borama is fairly representative of the large settled communities of Somalis in the Horn of Africa. It has a wintertime population of 150,000 and a summertime population of about 300,000. Half the population leaves the 6,000-foot elevation plateau of Borama, to avoid the occasional freezing weather there, and heads for the coastal city of Djibouti. In Summer, the temperatures in Djibouti can exceed 120 Fahrenheit (52 C was an extreme high reported fairly recently), and a move into the mountains in and around Borama is worth the sometimes arduous trip over very poorly developed roads.
There are quite a number of goats herded in all kinds of places. Awdal is no exception. Goats provide a very nice wool, which you may find in cashmere sweaters, as I understand it. They also provide a delicious and quite nutritious milk. The meat of goats is also quite good, especially if it is prepared in the Somali fashion. As a result of these attendant benefits, there are numerous goatherds. I’ve met some in Texas, some in Wyoming, and a few in Awdal.
I might mention that I’ve also met quite a large number of university professors in Borama. Amoud University has a very impressive cadre of professors, a large library, a nice computer lab, and hundreds of students. Borama also has a very nice hospital which was being managed by the non-governmental organization Coopi Italiano while I was there. On the other tentacle of diversity, goats are herded alongside sheep, and camels, cows, donkeys, cats, chickens, and—where the hyena problem is bad—dogs are among the domesticated animals found in Awdal.
There is a considerable population of literate, educated, and reasonably prosperous professionals, tradesmen, and businessmen in Borama. Borama also features several nice mosques, a population with considerable attention to faith, and, as in many Islamic countries, quite a few multilingual people who read and speak Arabic as well as their mother tongue, Somali. Since 1972, Somali has been a written language, and written signs are everywhere. Other languages frequently spoken in Borama are English, French, Italian, and Amharic. Other communities in Awdal include Bonn, Weerar, Fardahud, Gerissa, Lukhaya, Zeila, Jidhi, Waraqadiqta, and many more.
There are lots of minerals to be mined in different parts of Somali territory, also large natural gas fields and some petroleum. Some of the metals we know about are tantalum, niobium, uranium, thorium, gold, platinum, titanium, iron, tin, lead, and some of the non-metals are coal and emeralds. A mineral map and some geology maps may be found in our atlas.
Warlords
I find the idea of Somalia as a place mediated by warlords to be an odd concept. In this turn of phrase, I'm not sure what "mediated" is meant to convey. There are a lot of mainstream journalist articles which use the term "warlords" in connection with the half dozen or more groups with militia units in Mogadishu. Warlord is a term that could apply to a shogun in 18th Century Japan or an Indian chieftain in 19th Century Montana. General Norman Schwarzkopf, at the height of the Persian Gulf war of 1991, could have been called a warlord. He wasn’t, though, because the term is deliberately insulting.
The cultural difference among the various people who could legitimately be called warlords is so great that I don't feel the term has any useful meaning. It does appear in a lot of tripe that passes for mainstream media coverage, but as George Carlin notes in his delightful book Napalm & Silly Putty, we call the mainstream a stream because it is way too shallow to be considered a river.
I don't think there are any warlords in Somalia. There are war leaders, or militia leaders, in various parts of Somalia. People who defend their homes often organize militias; it is done in places as gentile as Switzerland, Texas, and Israel. You find that the mainstream media tends to call the leaders of these militia "officers" in countries other than Somalia. Very often, the elders of a community choose a war leader or officer, and he chooses his lieutenants and subordinates. He provides leadership, until the crisis is past or until another officer is chosen to replace him, or until he dies. Calling him a warlord and calling his lieutenants "henchmen" doesn't further a discussion of these issues.
Uranium
Uranium deposits are found in large quantities on some maps generated in the 1970s by Soviet mineralogy surveys. These tend to be within a few hundred kilometers of Mogadishu, though there are geological reasons for supposing uranium located elsewhere. In 1993, the USA government sent many huge convoys of trucks into the mountains where the uranium was known to be, and took many truckloads of ore to the port of Mogadishu. I propose that further investigation may reveal that the USA government stole much of the readily available uranium ore, though it would likely deny this idea.
Goatherds, Land Ownership, Oil Companies, and the State
Are there goatherds who own land that mineral deposits are found upon? Yes. In Somali culture, land is owned by sub-clans, which in Scottish culture are called septs. A group of septs forms a clan, a group of clans form a great clan, and a group of great clans is part of a larger lineage group. All Somalis are related by common descent. So, in addition to goatherds who own land, one may find university professors, doctors, lawyers, sheiks, and businessmen who own land.
Land in town tends to be subdivided, and individual homeowners and business owners have ownership of homes and manage particular shops. Houses and shops are also leased. There is some evidence that other forms of lease structure would be acceptable under traditional forms of Somali customary law.
There were a number of multinational companies which were interested in oil and natural gas in Somalia during the 1980s. Chevron, British Petroleum, Conoco, and Sinclair are among the majors who were drilling in the north part of Somalia. The last of these companies left the region in 1992. Various documents I’ve seen indicate that the last of their exploration leases expired in 1999, while the dictatorship with which they seemed comfortable doing business was expired in 1991.
I’ve approached various individuals associated with the major oil companies. Their position seems to be that it isn’t possible to convince their legal departments that individuals can govern their own interests. The ideas of ad hoc government and self government expressed in bodies of tradition and law such as the Xeer Samaron do not seem to be the sort of thing multinational corporation lawyers want to educate themselves upon. Perhaps that would be an area for some corporate law types to investigate further.
A typical discussion on this subject took place in December 2000 in Holland. The corporate law expert and the petroleum development expert expressed the opinion that none of the majors would touch the resources in Awdal unless there were a Western-style government imposing taxes, exercising eminent domain, providing security forces (police, military) at taxpayer expense (rather than at oil company expense), and offering a "mining law" that guaranteed the distribution of the "take" between the oil company and the government. The notion that anyone but a government could own property or contract for a mineral exploration or production leases seemed difficult to convey. I also found the use of the phrase "in civilized countries" to be frequent and offensive. (I’m of the opinion that followers of socialistic systems of coercion who willingly subvert private interests for the sake of obedience are not civilized, and never have been.)
Subsequently, however, we have had considerable interest expressed by professionals in the mining industry who don't work for the staid, multinational dinosaurs. So, it may be possible for landowners in Awdal, the people who live there, to see some development of their mining resources take place without going to the all the difficulties inherent in forming a huge, bureaucratically inept, powerful, dominating, and obedience-commanding "state."
Assuming that a company, let’s say a small Texas wildcat firm, wanted to go to Awdal and extract, say, tantalum, here's how I would suggest they go about it. They would need to be introduced to some people in Awdal. My company can do that, and so can some others. They would need to understand the area by visiting it, look at some of the documentation that supports the presence of tantalum, and then go about identifying the exact places they think are prospective of tantalum. Satellite imagery may be helpful in this regard, and there have been geologists who have done considerable fieldwork in Awdal. In fact, I met one, trained in the UK, who had come from Mogadishu in 1991 with a very interesting report on tantalum deposits all over Awdal. I’d be happy to make introductions among interested parties.
Visiting Somalia Safely
Owing to the widespread enthusiasm for foreign investment, trade, and commerce, activities to bring people in for tourism, for investigating what the British called the "mineral belt" of the (former) protectorate, or for any business purpose should go pretty well. When I was there, even the goatherds were enthusiastic about people visiting their country.
Under the traditions of Somali culture, a guest or visitor or client is called a marti. His patron or host is called an abaan. It is very easy for a person of reasonably good character to find an abaan. Introductions help, of course. Let me note further that in my wanderings around various parts of Awdal, I was accompanied by several Somalis. At times, I was not in sight of any of them. At no time was I accompanied by armed guards. The countryside was peaceful, and the few reminders of warfare were museum-piece tanks and armored cars.
So, it isn't like the sort of war-torn, strife-ridden area that many Western journalists convey the idea that Mogadishu has been for some time. One hardly ever reads of a Western journalist who has traveled as far from Mogadishu as the communities of Baidoa or Kismayo. By coast, Awdal is some 3,000 kilometers away. Somali territory is quite large and diverse.
Getting Permission to Mine in Somalia
Once some land was identified as being prospective of minerals, more detailed exploration and development needs to take place. At that point, and well before any mineral extraction would take place, the company interested in developing the resources would need to reach agreement with the community on whose land they wish to mine. That community is typically represented by various sultans, aqils (sultans in training, more or less), hadjs (persons who have made a pilgrimage to Mecca; typically these are successful businessmen) and others who are widely respected, such as judges.
The Somalis who live in Awdal know whose land is where. For the most part, the sub-clans along the coast are part of the Muhad’asse clan. The sub-clans near Borama are part of the Makahil clan. Both Muhad’asse and Makahil are part of the Samaron great clan. The Samaron are a Dir clan.
Assuming that the land prospective of minerals were found and sought, some agreement would very likely be reached. The amount of investment to be made could vary by the type of minerals and the amount of land sought. The use of the land for herding would continue during the exploration phase in all likelihood, and that would be most agreeable to the local population, I think. Any agreement that involved the extraction of minerals would need to involve a revenue sharing program with the people who own the land.
People involved in the mining industry have expressed interest in such arrangements. People in Awdal have expressed interest in reaching such agreements. Once an agreement has been reached with the elders of a community, its enforcement would be backed by the honor of those elders, in the same fashion that they enforce other property-related contracts (e.g., leasing a shop) or the judgments of courts (e.g., requiring a criminal to pay compensation to his victim).
Leasing Land versus Buying It
I don’t think that land is presently for sale in Awdal or elsewhere in Somalia under the terms that you would typically find in, say, Texas. The subdivision of property is anathema to Somali culture.
An anthropologist of my acquaintance, Spencer MacCallum, has written extensively on the subject of subdividing property, and why it is generally a bad thing. (See Formulations Issue No. 29—Ed.) He’s also researched a number of 999 year leases which have run their course in places like England and Holland. He recently agreed to serve as an advisor to the Awdal Roads Company.
So, I think the buying of land isn’t at issue. A lease would be. And, the enforcement of the leasehold would require the involvement of both the leasing company and their landlords. Leases are familiar to the Somalis, are upheld typically, and are part of a number of case precedents in Xeer Samaron about which I've read.
Extortion
What is to prevent warlords from demanding a share of the profit? I don't know. Again, show me the warlords.
In the case of war leaders from neighboring or distant clans, the local community would be eager to enforce the terms of the mineral lease arrangement. Somalis are not complacent when it comes to defending their homes or their businesses. They are very proactive. For example, in 1993, various Somalis from many different clans, fought a long and arduous war with the elite forces of the USA military. A battalion of US Army Rangers and a company of USA Combat Applications Group "Delta Force" operators were defeated in detail during the course of several street battles, ultimately being withdrawn from the region. Somalis in Awdal have defeated platoon-strength special forces operatives deployed from Djibouti and battalion-strength armies from Ethiopia, since 1993. When it comes to defending their homes, Somalis are willing to make sacrifices, are willing to fight, and are quite formidable.
But, what of war leaders from within the community? Their role is to serve in war time, to organize the defense of the community. That’s all. They don't have a role in demanding taxes from foreign companies. Indeed, when war leaders attempt to form governments or dictatorships, they are removed from power, sometimes killed.
Moreover, the people of Awdal, a great many of whom I spoke with on this subject, understand that when a company comes with investment capital, for example to do mining, the results are going to be instructive to other companies. If a company leases territory, does mining, shares the revenues according the agreement, and is somehow screwed over on the deal, that is going to end investment in mining, and may result in other investments being withdrawn. So, it is in the interest of the community, of all those elders, and of the neighboring clans, that everyone honor the agreements.
I have a great deal of respect for the honor, integrity, and faithfulness of many of the people I met in Awdal. I also respect their ability to ascertain their self-interest.
Indeed, as the great Wyoming philosopher Charles Curley has said, in a free market environment, those who are most cooperative gain the greatest rewards. Those who seek to screw over others are rarely able to profit much, or for long, unless they team up with some major power, like a big government.
Military Invasion
I think I’ve answered the question about Kenya. In the case of Awdal, any military from Kenya would have to fight their way through Ethiopia, which presents a number of 14,000 foot elevation mountains along various ranges, or they would have to fight through all the Somali clans along 3,000 kilometers of coastline. Nor is Kenya really that stable a place right now. A business associate who works frequently in Nairobi sells armored cars and security cameras like they were going out of fashion. Kenya is pretty much a non-starter as far as interfering powers go. I'd be very surprised to see Kenya deploy troops into any part of Somalia. There is even some possibility that the Somali region of Kenya may find its independence in the next decade or so.
The really interesting question is not Kenya. What if the USA government wanted to interfere? What if the UN wanted to interfere? I think the Somalis have shown that they can take on these impressive-sounding nationalist and internationalist groups and come out with their property intact. At considerable cost, mind you. Thousands of dead and thousands of casualties in the case of the 1993–95 violence in Mogadishu. But, the victors were the Somalis. And, in terms of who is going to protect the mine head and the personnel of the mining company, I would expect the mining company to take considerable responsibility in this area. I am quite certain that good Somali individuals who are well-armed and familiar with the terrain and population are available at a good price for providing escorts, guides, and armed guards as needed.
The Cost of Living in Somalia
How about that good price? One of the things that makes Awdal an attractive area for investment is the absence of taxes and regulatory "authorities" to whom anyone pays much attention. So, the cost of living is very low. I was able to feed my team of six adult men dinner for US$5.50 and breakfast for about US$3.75, excellent food in each case (dinner consisted of goat and pasta, more than we could eat; breakfast of pancakes and goat liver—yummy! ;-), at good, clean restaurants in each case, in January 2001. A pack of cigarettes cost me 42 cents in Borama, as compared to $1.95 for a comparable brand in Houston that same month. What's the difference? Not quality, not enthusiasm, not training, but taxes. Mostly, the people of Awdal benefit from not having a bunch of useless jerks fleecing them at every turn, while the people of Texas have all manner of government types on their backs.
The Somali Constitution and Freedom
Now, let's turn to the absence of a state as it relates to a constitution, the freedom of the populace, and property in general. Each of the great clans, such as the Samaron, have a Xeer or traditional culture and law. It is an oral tradition, though efforts are being made to bring it into a written record. I would argue that the Xeer Samaron operates as a constitution to the same extent that England or Great Britain has a constitution.
The people of Awdal guarantee the freedom of the people who live there, including guests who live and work there. Property rights are respected, agreements are respected, and there is an entire body of legal precedent for contract enforcement. There is an ad hoc government, which forms militia units or courts to respond to crises or disputes, and which provides for relief for the community from problems, whether acute or chronic.
There is no standing government, no huge body of bureau-rats scurrying about on a mountain of red tape. When judges are needed to decide a criminal case or a contract dispute, they are in plentiful supply in the community. When men with guns are needed to fight off invaders, they are ready. Most adult men are armed, and quite a lot of "artillery" is available when needed.
Let me go further, though: nobody gives you freedom. You aren’t free unless you claim and defend your freedom. A state doesn’t make you free. It taxes you, it imposes upon you, it regulates your conduct, and it may pretend to offer guarantees of safety. But a state cannot make you free, and isn’t interested in the task. A state serves the interests of those who control the state; anyone else who derives any benefit from the state may be getting a "free ride" which is unlikely to last. And, of course, the cost of those perceived benefits are enormous, paid for by taxes.
A constitution doesn’t make you free. It also makes a lousy bullet-proof vest. I prefer Kevlar and those nice ceramic inserts.
Your neighbors don’t make you free, the police don’t make you free, and your education doesn’t make you free (though it can be very helpful). You are the only person who is able to make you free. You either arrange for your freedom by cooperative means and fight for it when necessary, or you submit to those who command your obedience. If you are not willing to pay the cost of freedom, you won’t have it.
Legal Recourse and Rights
Do local residents have recourse against a mining company that releases toxins into their property? Yes. Under the Xeerai of the various clans, individuals and companies are responsible for the harm they do. If it is negligence, or tortious harm, compensation is required. If it is criminal harm, compensation is required. Very rarely, punishment is meted out; for the most part the tradition is for compensatory justice.
Do people have rights? That's a fairly significant issue, and I've had lengthy discussions on it. I think rights are a fantasy, a class of ideas which poorly define and very poorly protect individual freedom. I prefer to consider freedom, recourse, and property, as I think these terms are much more suited to the protection of liberty. Rights theories usually bore me, to the extent that they don’t dismay me. Of course, I tend to be exceedingly pragmatic with respect to freedom; I don't think it is theoretically possible to have freedom in the presence of a state, but it isn’t important, since in practice it never happens.
The Somalian State
Is Somalia without a state? Perhaps not. In August 2000, a group of elders, some of whom have indicated they were held there against their will, formed a new government for Somalia during a "peace" conference in Arta, Djibouti. It was announced with much fanfare and installed some distance from the capital of Mogadishu, then transferred to a hotel in Mog, and is now residing in some police barracks there. It has had very little success in controlling territory outside Mogadishu, it has lost most of its battles for control of territory, it has imposed a new fiat money which was not well-received by the shopkeepers in Mog, and it is basically a mess. But, who knows, it may eke out a continued existence.
Visit Awdal
What would tell you about how individuals live in Somalia? A trip there would perhaps do the trick. There are now five individuals who have expressed interest in going on a trip to Awdal in March 2002. Join the group! See our page at http://www.awdal.com/shop/trip.html or the link from the home page "Visit Awdal." Form your own opinion.
You'll find that things are not the same as those reports you read on the web from most sources. I do think you’ll find that people have freedom, establish property rights, and create wealth.
Anarchy
As for anarchy, I don’t think you'll find it there. I’m not an anarchist, by the way, but a propertarian, which is a freedom-oriented philosophy concentrating on private property as the fundamental from which all other freedom derives. Of course, I have been called an anarcho-capitalist without voicing any complaint.
Certainly, among the nomads of Somalia, you won’t find anarchy. Kropotkin would be proud of the way individual nomads and their families defend property in grazing lands, wells, and livestock. Bakunin, too, perhaps. Out in the field, you won’t find many representatives of government. You’ll find people everywhere, even in the vast Guban desert. You'll find self-government, communities of related interests, families, and clans. You'll find elders, leaders, and people concerned about their future. You'll find children who are well-cared for, with very little evidence of coercion in their raising. The land has a natural beauty which you might find delightful.
Modern notions of wealth don't inspire me. Modernism is an empty philosophy which tied itself, early on, to "scientific socialism" and other nonsense. Postmodernism hasn't always been much better.
Misinformation about Somalia on the Worldwide Web
With regard to the material from the Google search: I disagree with the claim that Somalia lacks natural resources. Gold, frankincense, and myrrh, the hat trick of the magi, are found in Awdal. The major development challenge appears, to me, to relate to a lack of capital investment. That is much easier to remedy than an excess of government.
There remains a great deal of pastoralism and agriculture. Many of the foods produced in Awdal are quite delicious, and the markets are teeming with produce. I think farming is much more widespread than the cite indicates. I’ve seen numerous maps which identify well sites; these are very plentiful. Where surface water isn’t available, there is plenty of potential for irrigation, especially drip-irrigation.
If by "modern sector" the cite refers to industrial-scale farming, then it may well be that banana plantations are it. Certainly, the existence of farms using modern irrigation systems and up-to-date farm machinery in the South should tell us a great deal about the potential for farming all over Somalia.
The fishing industry in Somalia was begun hundreds of years ago. By 1991, it was producing thousands of tons of fish per year. There is great potential for fishing in the waters off Awdal, where shark, tuna, lobster, sea cucumber, giant clam, and other seafood products are obtained. I was recently able to confirm the good prices paid in Djibouti for these seafood products. By the way, there is cold, deep water in the Gulf of Aden, quite near shore in some cases. Analyses I've seen show great potential for mariculture of both cold and warm water sea food. Shrimp farms are found just up the coast in Eritrea.
I'm not sure what constitutes a small forest area. The aromatic woods and gums are widespread. Trees are also found widely, and produce a number of products used by the Somalis. For example, the ash of the woble tree is used to turn hair a golden color, popular with children. Henna is commonly used by the elderly men of the Muhad’asse to turn their hair red. The French call this clan the "tête rouge."
A map of Somalia put out by the Democratic Republic in 1988 shows tens of thousands of acres of forest in the highlands of the north and in various other areas. Mind you, I wouldn’t invest much in woodlands camo for the region.
Minerals are found everywhere, if you are willing to count silicon dioxide (sand) as a mineral. It isn't the case that petroleum is found throughout the country, as Chevron was not able to find any in Awdal. Other than a Chinese oil company which recently signed a deal with a group out of Hargeisa, there are no oil companies exploring for petroleum in Somalia right now, to my knowledge. There were several oil companies exploring as recently as 1992, which may be what your citation is referencing. I don't know.
There are a lot of small industries throughout Somalia. I don't know of any that were established with "foreign aid" from governments. Quite a few have been assisted by foreign capital, especially capital from the Somali Diaspora. The Somalis are an industrious people. For example, in 1996, a group of Somalis set up Amoud University, from scratch, based in some buildings left by the British. They raised the money from Somali Diaspora and other sources, they did all the work to refurbish the buildings themselves, and they now staff and operate a successful university which trains hundreds of students a year.
There is a railway that runs through Somali-owned territory, from the port of Djibouti to Ethiopia. It is not in the territory of the Democratic Republic of Somalia, but what is, these days? <smile>
The things that pass for all-weather roads in the north are not all well-paved. The things that are not all-weather roads are impassable when it rains, as it does reliably once or twice a year, and are not much more than well-worn tracks in some places. The coastal road between Bull'ado and Zeila in Awdal is not all that well-worn, either. Of course, our company means to change that situation.
Air transportation to Borama, Hargeisa, Kismayo, Mogadishu, and a great many other cities in Somalia is provided by scheduled air service. Da’allo Airlines has daily and weekly flights into all major cities and many towns throughout Somalia, from Dubai, Djibouti, Addis Ababa, and among the various cities as well. Scheduled air service into Djibouti by Air France, Da’allo flying Air Luxor equipment, and Yemenia Airlines is very reliable. Ethiopia Airlines has scheduled service into Hargeisa. I would not call any of these companies "small air charter firms" because they just aren't. I've seen UN aircraft in Hargeisa. If we may count the European Community agency for overseas assistance (ECHO) as an NGO, then I've seen an NGO aircraft in Hargeisa.
Drugs, such as qat, and many pharmaceuticals are brought into all parts of Somalia quite openly. If there is a drug smuggling trade that extends beyond bypassing the occasional Ethiopian checkpoint to avoid the duty on qat, it was not much in evidence.
As far as government anti-drug policy papers I’ve seen, there is some indication that Ethiopia is a transit center for drugs coming from Southeast Asia and destined for South Africa or Europe. I have no direct information on the subject. I have been told that marijuana grows well in Ethiopia and the highlands of Awdal, but I have no firsthand data on that matter, either. As I’m not in the market, I didn’t look for shops offering items like coke, hash, or heroin. I suppose one can find these, if one is diligent. Based on the night clubs in Djibouti, it shouldn't be hard to find such items there.
So, let me wrap up my comments on the Google search material: it is mostly incorrect or out of date. There are a great many misconceptions, preconceptions, and myths about Somalia. Not everyone is motivated to have the truth about the process of individual self-government and community relationships in Somalia made known. Nor is everyone willing to go there to see for themselves. Much that is reported about Somalia is based on reports from Mogadishu, which are about as relevant to things in Awdal as reports about Washington, DC are to conditions in Montana. (About as relevant as conditions in London to events in the Orkney islands.)
Shops in Awdal sell all manner of equipment, tools, and machinery. Digital watches are cheap and plentiful, and as good as Casio and Swatch anywhere. I bought a Casio in Borama for $9, and it is running fine six months down the road, which is much more than I can say for the brand new Ironman Timex I brought in with me (don’t trust that 100 meters rating in sea water, in my experience). Computers are also found widely. There are three telephone companies providing service in Borama two of which offer Internet connectivity, four in Hargeisa, and I've heard of as many as six in Mogadishu. Electric power is widely available from private generators to utility grids in the major cities, though it is not uniformly reliable.
Currency exchange and international money transfers are handled by two "banking" concerns, Barakat and Dahab Shiil, though neither engages in usury.
They don't launch space shuttles there. Yet. But in other ways, the 21st Century is coming to Awdal and Somalia.
So, if you'd like to know more, my best suggestion is to go there and see for yourself. Or, take in that movie Black Hawk Down coming in March, and see how well Hollyweird does at telling the story. Oh, and don't believe everything you read. <grin>
Regards,
Jim Davidson
Awdal Roads Company
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