By December 25, 2023, The minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs of the Federal Government of Somalia organized on Monday a public consultation for women’s participation in the constitutional review process and its Completion.
The Consultation meeting discussed the role of Somali women in the review and completion of the constitution. The meeting was attended by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs of the Somali Federal Government H.E Hassan Moallin Mahmoud, and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. Faisal Adan Hassan, and members of the two parliamentary committees, as well as Somali women in their respective divisions.
Minister Hassan noted the importance of the role of women in the review of the constitution, as well as the permanent secretary of the ministry who spoke at the meeting stressed that the role of women in the review of the constitution is necessary, and several women representing different sectors spoke at the meeting. The meeting also engaged with different members from the communities who have proposed ideas and agenda to participate in the review of the constitution, the consultation was presented on the status of the review of the constitution.
During the public consultation meeting, the minister answered direct questions from the participants and listened to their suggestions. The minister finally closed the meeting and welcomed the suggestions of Somali women as they were ready to participate in the review of the constitution.
The National Constitutional Convention was held in 2012, and a process to review and develop a new constitution began. It involved the establishment of a National Constitutional Convention, which consisted of a diverse group of Somali stakeholders, including representatives from various clans, civil society organizations, and the Somali diaspora.
Somalia has been in the process of reviewing and amending its constitution for years and the parliaments in the past could not finalize the constitution.
Somali President H.E. Prof. Hassan Sheik Mohamud has recently said that it is time to finalize the constitution with the active participation of the communities and other stakeholders. It is expected that the 11th Parliament will validate the constitution and not wait for the 12th Parliament of Somalia to validate the constitution.
