Somalia to prolong ATMIS stay amid Al-Shabaab crackdown

AFP Photo: African Union forces have been in Somalia since 2007

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The government of Somalia intends to extend the mandate of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] less than 20 months before their stay expires, following heightened campaigns against the militants who have been wreaking havoc in the country.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has reportedly started shuttle diplomacy to convince the international community to extend the stay, with sustainability being the major undertaking. Under the Somali Transition Plan [STP], ATMIS is supposed to exit service in December 2024.

This week, the African Union is expected to discuss the future of ATMIS in Somalia, with Hassan Sheikh insisting that the stay should go beyond 2024, adding that their presence has been instrumental in boosting peace and stability in the country which has been unstable for three decades.

But a source close to the peacekeeping mission told The EastAfrican the proposal to extend the tenure of Atmis “has been mooted” but there is nothing concrete yet as the idea is “still in the corridors” of the Federal Government of Somalia leaders and some other stakeholders that Mogadishu has reached out to.

Brig-Gen Felix Kulayigye, the spokesperson of the Uganda People's Defense Forces [UPDF] supports the idea of extending the mandate of ATMIS, noting that the presence of peacekeepers will help the country to stabilize within the shortest period. There are close to 20,000 ATMIS soldiers in the country.

“President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is right,” Brig-Gen Kulayigye said. The UPDF contingent forms the bulk of the Atmis force, manning the security of the Banadir region, which hosts the Somali capital Mogadishu.

Analysts argue that the calls for a new exit date arise out of the reality that Somalia has not built and equipped its security forces to deal with defending the fragile country that has been in continuous conflict since 1991.

Some of the Troops Contributing Countries include Kenya, Djibouti, Uganda, Burundi and Ethiopia. Early this year, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud met Kenya President William Ruto, Djibouti's Omar Guelleh and Ethiopia Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed who agreed to send more soldiers to the country.

GAROWE ONLINE