The Federal Government of Somalia, United Nations, and donor partners welcomed the signing today of six new Joint Programmes through the Somalia Development and Reconstruction Facility (SDRF), within the framework of the Somali New Deal Compact.

These joint programmes directly support the Peace-building and State-building Goals of the Somali Compact, and the key deliverables of the Government’s Vision 2016, with a specific focus on achieving results in the state formation process, constitutional review, electoral support, rule of law, youth employment, and institutional capacity development.

The initiatives will in particular build a stronger civil service at Federal and State levels, support more effective delivery of justice services, and provide thousands of jobs for Somali youth.

They will also support key deliverables in the Government’s Vision 2016, including the formation of new federal member states in the South and Central regions of Somalia, undertaking the review of the constitution, and building capacity of the country to deliver democratic electoral political processes.

The launch of these programmes within the framework of the SDRF reflects the strong commitment of the international community and the Government of Somalia to work as one in order to improve the lives of Somali women, men and Children.

This is an important agreement which will strengthen the government institutions and it is also a milestone for the cooperation between Somalia and our international partners” said His Excellency Abdirahman Ali Aynte, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation.

The European Union, UK-DFID, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Italy have pledged more than USD 106 million over three years towards these priority programmes. “The signature of the new Joint Programmes is a major step in the New Deal Compact implementation.

It will allow us to empower significantly the Federal Government and to support directly core state functions,” said Daria Fané, Head of Cooperation at the EU Delegation to Somalia

The six Joint Programmes are led by the Somali Government and implemented by UN partners including FAO, ILO, UNDP, UN-Habitat, UNICEF, UNODC, UNOPS, UNSOM and UN Women.

The programmes will benefit all areas of the country, including Puntland and the newly emerging Federal Member states.

The signing of these new programmes reflects our continued commitment to support Somali-led and Somali-owned priorities,” said Philippe Lazzarini, DSRSG.

Our collective focus now must be on accelerating delivery of tangible results to the Somali people, and in in translating these programmes into delivery in particular at the sub-federal level.”

It is the centrepiece of the UN’s support to a Somali led and Somali owned transition towards peace and prosperity.