Statement of Somalia at the UNGA72

Syria, Libya: “From Syria to the Central African Republic, from the Rohingya people of Myanmar to the people of Libya, the number of protracted and new conflicts remains unacceptably high.”

Conflict Prevention: “In Somalia, we have made significant strides, which have weakened the capability of Al-Shabaab.”

Peacekeeping: “We believe that investment in peacekeeping is a worthy investment in peace-building and state-building and we have seen the dividends of this investment in Somalia.”

Women and empowerment: “Women are crucial in decision making and investment in society. In spite of our many challenges, Somalia has made significant steps in this regard. During the 2016 election, the number of women in our bi-cameral Parliament increased from 14 percent to 24 percent. Although we missed our 30 percent target, we did improve markedly from a few years ago. Six months ago, when I was forming my Council of Ministers, I appointed six women to my Cabinet. They hold some of the most important portfolios in our nation, including trade and industry, health. youth and sports, women and human rights and humanitarian affairs.”

Sexual violence: “Vital legislations on human rights such as the soon to be approved Sexual Offences Bill, provide the tools to fight impunity of sexual perpetrators.”