The report provides an update on and mapping of the security situation at both country and regional level, namely for the 18 administrative regions foreseen by the Somali provisional constitution as they existed before 1991. The report builds upon preceding EASO COI reports, notably the Somalia: Security Situation from September 2021, but also Actors, Targeted profiles and Key socio-economic indicators. They were published in the period July- September 2021.
The report provides an overview of the main security trends and conflict dynamics at country level in the reference period (1 July 2021 - 30 November 2022). Within this context it includes information on crucial developments that were already visible as of December 2022.
Additionally, the report provides an update on the main changes regarding state and non-state (armed) actors and their control areas or presence during the same reporting period. For the full overview of these actors see the report on Somalia: Actors. Finally, the report engages with conflict dynamics and security developments at the regional level. In this section, it provides information about incidents and their impact on civilian life, including conflict related humanitarian issues.
The drafting of this report was finalised on 3 February 2023.
This report was jointly drafted by the COI Sector of the EUAA and ACCORD - Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation. The following departments and organisations have reviewed the report, together with EUAA:
- Austria, Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum, COI Department – Staatendokumentation;
- Belgium, Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons, CEDOCA – Documentation and Research Center;
- Germany, Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) - Country Analysis;
- Sweden, Swedish Migration Agency, National Operations Department – Migration Analysis Unit.
This report is produced in line with the EUAA COI Report Methodology (2019) and the EUAA COI Writing and Referencing Style Guide (2019).
Policy
After the fall of president Siad Barre in 1991, Somalia sank into chaos. Various authorities have taken power since then. Somaliland and Puntland became de facto states independent of Somalia in the 1990's. The general security situation in Somalia is largely determined by a long-term, ongoing, internal armed conflict which has resulted in many Somalis being uprooted or seeking refuge in other countries. In order to assess the need for international protection, the Commissioner General takes into account the fact that there are fundamental differences between the situations in Mogadishu, Central and Southern Somalia on the one hand, and the situation in Somaliland and Puntland on the other.