EISA Somalia programme 2013-2017 (Transition, Stability & Democratization)

This programme achieved the following results: • Supported the Technical Selection Process for the establishment of the National Independent Electoral Commission (NIEC) and the Boundaries and Federalism Commission (BFC). These two commissions are today operational, and they are currently working towards the 2020 elections; • Played a pivotal role in supporting the National Consultative Forum (NCF) for the 2016 electoral process. EISA facilitated five dialogues in five regions to discuss the NCF electoral options. • At Federal Member State (FMS) level EISA played a key role in the management of the constitution-making process for the Interim Jubbaland Administration. The key outcome of this process was the drafting and adoption of a provisional Jubbaland Constitution based on the fundamentals of human rights and democratic principles which reflect the views of the citizens of Jubbaland as they have been gathered through a representative outreach process and passed through the Jubbaland Constitutional Convention. While this programme was supported by the Somalia Stability Fund (SSF), it provided an excellent opportunity for the Institute to expand its reputation beyond Mogadishu and deliver on key activities in support to Somalia’s transitional goals and complemented the activities undertaken through the Sida supported interventions. • EISA supported the Federal Member State formation process by ensuring full and relevant participation of all segments of communities. This was effected by the expansion of the project to more regions across Somalia i.e the Interim Galmudug Administration (IGA), and Hiraan and Middle Shabelle , The organisational development training provided in Adaado and Balcad regions capacitated more than 200 civil society members to better administer their organisations, engage with authorities and contribute to the state-building process in 2016. • EISA provided support to gender engineering and empowerment of women’s participation in the 2016-2017 political process in Somalia. In this regard, EISA has been working with the Somali Women Leadership Initiative (SWLI). A core group of 15 women from the SWLI network were trained on how to fund raise, develop proposals and develop and use a logical framework approach. This has enabled SWLI to secure funds from UNDP for their lobbying, advocacy and capacity building activities for the 2016-2017 electoral process. • Cognisant of the importance of the Electoral Law in the current democratisation process toward the 2020 universal suffrage elections, EISA provided support to the Ministry of Interior, Federal Affairs and Reconciliation (MoIFAR) by capacitating staff of the Electoral Law Working Group (ELWG). With the skills acquired by the 37 participants at the workshop, the ELWG was able to draft its road map for the Electoral Law drafting process and develop a public outreach programme. Reinforcing the gender dimension of the ELWG’s work through a workshop on ‘’mainstreaming gender in Electoral Law Drafting process’’ for 37 participants from the MoIFAR, the Ministry of Women and Human Rights and the Office of the Prime Minister and COSs. • In support to federalism and decentralisation the capacity of commissioners and staff of the Banadir Regional Administration was developed through a series of workshops. • EISA supported CSOs, focusing on women and youth trained in internal and external communication and project management to ensure a better visibility of their organisations and be able to engage with stakeholders such as government’s agencies, the donor community and the population at large. • EISA has been one of the main partners of the Ministry of Constitutional Affairs (MoCA) through various activities including capacity building workshops, the facilitation of stakeholders’ dialogue sessions and study tours. With EISA’s support The MoCA was able to convene consultative meetings, providing thus the ministry with a unique opportunity to gather views and opinions from the various segments of the population on the CRP. One of the success stories of this support is the organisation of the MoCA four-day strategic retreat that led to the two-year public outreach strategy of the ministry. • Building on the opportunity of the registration of political parties, EISA conducted a series of induction workshops in August 2018 to enable newly partially registered political parties to perform their duties as key actors of the scheduled 2020 universal suffrage elections.  

To complement ongoing initiatives in support of the democratization and stabilization process of Somalia from a conflict-ridden and undemocratic state with a fragile central authority to a more stable and democratising state. Specifically, EISA intends, through capacity building activities for Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), political parties and Parliament, to make a modest contribution towards laying the foundations for a more stable Somalia and a successful democratic transition, including the electoral process. This relates to i) more progress towards a stable and peaceful federal Somalia through inclusive political processes and ii) Key Somali stakeholders, including women, supported by EISA, better perform and deliver on their duties, and complement ongoing stabilization initiatives.