Hassan Sheikh inaugurated as new Somalia president

By: Zakeriye Ahmed, Horn diplomat correspondent

Somalia’s newly elected President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has been officially inaugurated on Thursday.

Various delegations from different countries in the region and Somalia’s international partners attended the inauguration of the 10th President of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, at the Afisyoni tent inside highly protected Mogadishu’s International Airport Aden Adde.

After 5 years and 3 months, today Afisyoni tent hosts another inauguration of president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who becomes the first president who defeated his successor.

Regional leaders

President of Djibouti Ismail Omar Guelleh, Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed, Uhura Kenyatta the president of Kenya, Egyptian PM Mustafa Madbuuli, the vice president of South Sudan Taban Deng Gai, and Ugandan president special envoy, former PM Amama Mbabazi have attended the inauguration of Somalia’s newly elected president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Ministerial delegations from Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, Qatar, Burundi, United Arab Emirates, Uganda, and other diplomatic delegates from the Arab League, India, Bahrain, Indonesia, and Oman, also attended the event.

Also, the chairperson of ONLF, Abdirahman Mahdi, and his delegation also arrived in Mogadishu to attend the event. The ONLF was previously considered a terrorist organization by the government led by the former 9th President of Somalia Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, although it was rejected by parliament.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was elected on 15 May, and he became the first president of Somalia who held this office twice.

Mogadishu Security

Somalia’s capital city, Mogadishu is under security lockdown for the inauguration of the 10th President of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud will nominee the country’s prime minister in the upcoming days.

This inauguration comes after 5 years, 3 months, and 19 days when 22/07/2017 this tent hosted the inauguration of former president Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo. However, this inauguration comes at a time, Somalia faces one of the worst droughts which affected almost 7 million citizens who are facing lack of food and water shortage.

President Mohamud said, and there are fears that the drought will turn into famine. The president  noted these droughts now happen almost every year, and said there are many reasons for this, including climate change.

“Somalia will not be involved in international competitions and will stay neutral” president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said.

In addition, the new president thanked the international community for supporting the recently concluded electoral process. The process lasted over a year because of political disputes that at one point saw Mohamud’s predecessor attempt to extend his mandate by 24 months.

Meanwhile, Former president Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo congratulations president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud by saying, “We celebrate your success and commit to offering you our strongest support to deliver your vision. We are truly proud of ourselves for our longstanding tradition of democracy, as this day signifies victory for our nation”

© Horn Diplomat 2022