Somaliland votes with leaders seeing international recognition in reach

13/11/2024 11:20

        Voters in Somaliland head to the polls on Wednesday to choose a president at a time when the breakaway Somali region sees international recognition within reach after three decades of de facto self-rule.
        
        Somaliland, which occupies a strategic position near the entryway to the Red Sea, declared independence from the Mogadishu government in 1991 but has not been recognised by any other country, restricting access to international finance and the ability of its 6 million people to travel.
        
        The Hargeisa government is hoping to soon finalise a preliminary deal signed in January with landlocked Ethiopia that would grant Addis Ababa coastal land in exchange for diplomatic recognition. Hargeisa is also hopeful U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will be favourable to its cause.
        
        President Muse Bihi Abdi, in power since 2017, is standing for re-election against the main opposition party's candidate, Abdirahman Cirro. The vote was originally scheduled for 2022, but lawmakers opted to extend Bihi's term by two years.
        
        The candidates differ on domestic issues, but both have expressed support for the memorandum of understanding with Ethiopia. Mohamed A. Mohamoud, Somaliland's representative to Kenya, told reporters that the government would finalise the deal after the election, regardless of who wins.