SONYO and Its Restlessness in Seeking fund for Member Organizations

FOR MORE GRAPHIC DESIGN FREEBIES: VISIT WWW.DESIGNFREEBIES.ORG By Hamse A. Khaire

Back in 2006 a process of developing a national youth policy for 4 years (2008-2011) was undertaken by youth organizations together with the then ministry of Youth and Sport, ICYP and UNICEF. The chief aim of having a national youth policy was to ensure a more coordinated approach to meeting the needs and aspirations of young people.

As mentioned in the introduction of that NYP document, the policy is said to be “a declaration of commitments that Somaliland gives it is young population”. It is this commitment and the prospects for its fulfillment which this article will look critically.

As per the plan, it was supposed that the formulation, approval, implementation and evaluation of the policy to take place within 4 years starting from 2008 until 2011. The formulation process was roughly on time, quite rigorous and consultative in nature. It is the second phase, the approval process, which was problematic, delayed and which took 5 year to be done (it was approved just 2 months ago)- a year later than the planned completion time of the whole exercise. This unjustifiably long delay on the part of the Somaliland authority, a key partner in youth development, is, on one hand, a clear manifestation of the absence of political will and the lack of ownership among youth leaders on the other.

Political will and ownership are key ingredients that are missing and could explain part of the story. With cautious reading of the document, one can find out that the lack of ownership, for instance, is obvious and detectable. In the background of the policy, the following statement is made:

“The National Youth Policy (NYP) 2010-2015 is part of a global trend of formulating youth policies that addressed the changing conditions of young population in the 21st century. As countries worldwide engage in a process of developing/ renewing youth policy, the National Youth Policy 2010-2015 seeks to contribute both to the particular needs and circumstances of Somaliland’s youth, and the global youth community”

From this statement (see the underlined part), it seems that this policy is made because it is FASHIONABLE to do so. Even though the second part of the statement mentions contribution to Somaliland youth needs, however, time tells us otherwise.

What worries us a lot is not the delay in approval but rather the value-added by approving it now. In other words, what is the point of approving a policy supposed to be implemented and completed five years ago. Again this shows the absence of faith in youth matters by concerned stakeholders and the need to challenge this tradition of empty promises and lip services.

The Way Forward

Once it is approved now, even though it seems irrelevant, I’d rather alert SONYO, as the legitimate body that represent youth, not torush implementing it unless a revision and updating is done. I say this because implementing an expired policy will have serious consequences for the future work of SONYO itself and youth in general.

The need for updating, revision and changes are supported by recent development in the country. First, it has recently been launched “ Somaliland Vision 2030” - a blueprint for Somaliland’s development agenda for the next three decades and an interim fiveyear national development plan (NDP)- which necessities the need for NYP to be aligned to the overall national vision. Secondly, SONYO’s marvelous “Youth Situation Survey”, the first of its kind, in which 800 youth all over the country participated could serve as a source of adjustment.

Thirdly and finally, it is now a fact of life that the only thing constant is “change” and youth we’ll not afford to undertake the risk of assuming a static environment and policy set accordingly. This means that prioritization shouldnot be assumed to remain the same but that reordering them and weighting them against the trend in the social, economic and political environment is a necessity.