UN Under Secretary-General Atul Khare highlighted the significant role played by the United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) following his three-day solidarity visit to Somalia. He noted that the future role of UNSOS in Somalia will be determined as part of the post-2024 discussions on security arrangements in Somalia, and a decision by the Security Council.
Khare also emphasized UNSOS’s support for the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) and Somali Security Forces (SSF) as well as his optimism for Somalia’s future. ATMIS is scheduled to exit Somalia in December.
During the Somali Security conference in December 2023 in New York, the Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud laid out his vision for Somalia’s security sector as UNSOS looks into effective ways to build Somalia’s capacity and provide operational support to Somali security forces.
Mr. Khare also acknowledged the international partners contributing to the Somalia Trust Fund and called upon all UN Member States to contribute to the Trust Fund to enable the Somali Security Forces to take over full responsibilities.
According to UN Security Council Resolution 2710 (2023), UNSOS was expected to increase the number of Somali security forces supported from the Somalia Trust Fund, but resource shortfalls have hindered this scaling up.
During his visit, Mr. Khare held discussions with several key figures, including Somalia Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre, National Security Advisor Hussein Sheikh Ali, and the Head of ATMIS, Ambassador Mohamed El-Amine Souef. He also held meetings with UN Guard Unit Lt. Col. Peter Omeja, Movcon and Aviation section staff, as well as UNSOS Section Chiefs before wrapping up the visit with a town hall meeting with UN staff in Somalia.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS).