A new offensive against Al-Shabaab

The policy brief examines the 'stabilisation' phase of Somalia's offensive against Al-Shabaab, highlighting how resource competition among political elites and donors creates coordination failures. It identifies tensions between federal and state governments, donor-driven top-down approaches, and the risks of rushing interim administration formation in liberated areas, recommending a centralised stabilisation fund and a central coordinating body.

• The military offensive against Al-Shabaab, which began in August 2022 and combined the Somali National Army (SNA) with local Ma’awisley clan militias, has achieved the most significant territorial gains since the mid-2010s.
• Stabilisation efforts are primarily donor-driven due to the federal government's financial constraints, as it generates less than 30% of its own national budget.
• Resource competition among Somali political elites—including federal and state leaders and NGO heads—hampers coordination, with multiple line ministries vying for authority over stabilisation funds.
• Donor practices contribute to coordination challenges and high operational costs because major donors like the EU, US, and UK often channel funds through companies registered in their own home regions rather than using a combined fund.
• There is a lack of consensus on the definition of 'stabilisation,' with some donors preferring the term 'recovery,' leading to a diversity of approaches and a 'messy situation' where policymakers adapt language simply to secure funding.
• In liberated areas, coordination failures have led to the rushed establishment of interim administrations to meet donor project milestones, sometimes bypassing necessary community reconciliation and triggering violent disputes.
• Tensions exist between the federal government and federal member states over the control of stabilisation forces and administration, as seen in clashes between federal forces and SouthWest local police in Barowe town.

APA

Musa, A. M., & Aden, H. (2023). A new offensive against Al-Shabaab. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/383d466e-bf50-4e0e-93b9-c13e3bbbec2c/Musa and Aden - Improving Coordination in Somalias Stabilisation PRIO Policy Brief 11-2023.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Musa, Ahmed M., and Hassan Aden. A new offensive against Al-Shabaab. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2023. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/383d466e-bf50-4e0e-93b9-c13e3bbbec2c/Musa and Aden - Improving Coordination in Somalias Stabilisation PRIO Policy Brief 11-2023.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Musa |first1=Ahmed M. |last2=Aden |first2=Hassan |title=A new offensive against Al-Shabaab |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=November 2023 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/383d466e-bf50-4e0e-93b9-c13e3bbbec2c/Musa and Aden - Improving Coordination in Somalias Stabilisation PRIO Policy Brief 11-2023.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{musa2023new, author = {Musa, Ahmed M. and Aden, Hassan}, title = {{A new offensive against Al-Shabaab}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2023}, month = nov, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/383d466e-bf50-4e0e-93b9-c13e3bbbec2c/Musa and Aden - Improving Coordination in Somalias Stabilisation PRIO Policy Brief 11-2023.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }