Since it declared independence in 1991, Somaliland has worked to develop a system of multi-party democracy. The result is a relatively complex but home-grown set of political arrangements, providing concessions to and incorporating different interest groups.

This was the unanimous summation of various stakeholders on the 27th June at the British Institute in Eastern Africa; Nairobi Kenya where the future prospects for democracy and the lessons learned from the last electoral process was the focus of discussions.

The event whose topic “What future for democracy in Somaliland?” organized by the Rift Valley Institute Nairobi Forum and Saferworld pooled its participants from a diversified somaliland democratization process stakeholders among them foreign diplomats based in Nairobi, Donors, International Election Observers , Academy for peace and Development-APD and the Somaliland Non-State Actors Forum-SONSAF among others.

While a representative from the National Election Commission-NEC failed to take part due to travel constraints the foursome of country’s delegates who also presented papers at the meet were the Chairperson, Executive director and women leader from SONSAF and a senior APD official.

The “What future for democracy in Somaliland?” discussions dwelt on the local election observers – report titled Somalilanders Speak: Lessons from the 2012 local elections” released by Saferworld and the Somaliland Non State Actors Forum (SONSAF) in April 2013. …