Despite terror threats by al-Shabab insurgents, life in Somalia is relatively calm thanks to the peacekeeping forces. DW's Frank Yiga in Kampala visited the capital, Mogadishu, and also toured the countryside.
Image: DW/Frank Yiga
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After a long day's work, Somalis and foreigners like to catch up for a drink and chat at the Leaf Camp hotel in Mogadishu. The capital is busy and bustling despite the threat of attacks by the militant group al-Shabab, Suleiman Elmem, one of the patrons, told DW. Maka al Mukarama is the busiest street in Mogadishu, with overflowing traffic jams, pedestrians crisscrossing under the scorching heat, and crowded business outlets displaying all sorts of merchandise. Life seems to be normal, unlike in the past when al-Shabab was in control. "Three years ago, they used to control parts of Mogadishu — now they don't control anything, so their presence is insignificant," Elmem said.
Al-Shabab not only controlled Mogadishu, but also large portions of the Somali countryside. Although an African Union-led military campaign has pushed them back, the insurgents remain a major security challenge in Somalia — where their ultimate goal is to establish an Islamic state.
"A journey of 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) begins with a step," Ama Shiddo, a Mogadishu-based real estate salesman, told DW. He is convinced that Somalia is headed for a bright future. "People are coming back, rebuilding their houses, universities and hospitals are opening, and business is booming more than ever in the past three years," he said.
Bomb attacks occur often, especially in MogadishuImage: picture-alliance/AA/S. Mohamed
Hope for future
Young people like Ahmed Abdul, who studied civil engineering in Uganda, are increasingly returning home to be part of the reconstruction process. "The Somali youth are now active, and they participate in development and reconstruction," Abdul said.
Further to the southwest, in the village of Ceelijaale, the Quick Impact Project initiated by the Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) serving under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), is helping young people develop their capabilities and talent. And they are excited about this initiative, an officer named Muhumuza said, pointing out the importance of targeting young people and keeping them busy "because, if you don't, that gives al-Shabab the chance to lure them in their ranks."
For peacekeepers it's important to keep young boys busy and off the streets to prevent them from joing al-Shabaab IslamistsImage: DW/Frank Yiga
In the framework of the project, 25-year-old Salim Hamis joined the local soccer team in Ceelijaale and is now team captain. Soccer keeps him from being bored, and "joining bad company," the jobless young man told DW, adding that he fervently hopes to play professional football in the future, maybe abroad.
Endless conflict?
In Buufo, a remote village southwest of Mogadishu where people tend their cows, goats, chickens and camels, 55-year-old Abdallah Bashir told DW that al-Shabab is still a threat, saying that is why people turn to the African Union for food, safety and education. The villagers can only go to UPDF-patrolled areas, he said.
Back at the AMISOM base, a group of women and children lined up for free medical treatment. Hadija is one of the patients who has come to seek medical treatment. "I have malaria, a headache, and a fever," she says. The soldiers say the turnout for free drugs to treat diarrheal diseases, malaria, respiratory tract infections, tuberculosis, and diabetes is always overwhelming.
AMISOM troops give out goodies to locals in times of plentyImage: DW/Frank Yiga
Apart from medical treatment, Somalis also receive food handouts that the soldiers share when they have plenty of provisions. Despite such increasing threats from al-Shabab, Brigadier General Paul Lokech, commander of the Ugandan contingent in AMISOM sector 1, concludes that the people of Somalia are now enjoying relative peace and stability, apart from a few isolated areas where the peacekeepers are stepping up their operations.
Mogadishu — city of extremes
Somalia's capital is both - a city of dispair and hope. Mogadishu has been ravaged by nearly 30 years of civil war but is now at the helm of rebuilding a failed state.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Abdiwahab
In the face of terror
The truck was loaded with explosives and detonated at a busy junction in the heart of Mogadishu in the afternoon of September 14, 2017. The explosion of the bomb killed at least 276 people and injured hundreds more. It was the worst terror attack in the history of Somalia. Nearly three decades of civil war and terror have also robbed the population of its resilience to drought.
Image: Reuters/F. Omar
Fighting starvation - a Somali reality
Xamdi is a child of Somali nomads and has been in the nutrition ward of Mogadishu's Banadir Hospital since the beginning of August. Her mother feeds her with the peanut-based 'Plumpy’Nut' paste to avoid severe acute malnutrition. Xamdi is three years old and only weighs seven kilograms. Most kids in Germany in the same age group weigh twice as much. About 800,000 Somalis are facing starvation.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Collapsed health system - even in the capital
This boy recovers in the bed next to Xamdi. He is fighting pneumonia, one of the all too common infections caused by chronic malnutrition and overcrowded conditions in Mogadishu's refugee camps. His hands are wrapped in paper to prevent him from pulling out his feeding tube. Banadir Hospital is the biggest public clinic in the capital, but even here the collapse of the health system is visible.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Mogadishu - city of refugees
Mogadishu is full of makeshift homes. Many nomads and countryside dwellers are determined to stay. They have fled civil war, terror, violence and hunger. The city's population has swollen to nearly 2.5 million. At least 600,000 are officially regarded as 'internally displaced people'.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Camp life takes a heavy toll
The congested and unhygienic living conditions in the camps are a health hazard. Acute respiratory tract infections and diarrhea are common diseases among Mogadishu's internally displaced population. Life in the makeshift camps is a daily struggle for the next meal and the next bucket of water.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Life in waiting
There is not much to do inside the camps but to sit and wait. Many children don't have access to education. Most makeshift camps lack playgrounds or other recreational spaces.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
City of ruins
There is much hardship outside the camps, too. The old part of Mogadishu is particularly pockmarked by nearly three decades of internal conflict. But there are also signs of new beginnings.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Selfie time
Early September 2017: These youngsters are having a good time in Mogadishu's Peace Park. All of them are students, all of them express faith in the new government of western-backed President Mohamed. One of them wants to become a civil aviation engineer. He says: "It is much safer here than five years ago." Five years ago al-Shabab ruled the capital. Today the extremists send suicide bombers.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
No hand grenades
Right at the entrance to Peace Park, visitors are reminded to leave behind Kalashnikovs, knives, hand grenades and pistols.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
The happening place
Liido beach draws huge crowds especially after Friday prayers. People meet to dance and play soccer. Soccer is hugely popular in Somalia. Young lovers meet to court each other. Mogadishu's Liido beach was deserted under al-Shabab's brief rule of the capital.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Reconstruction in full swing
The international community has started to invest in rebuilding Somalia's shattered state. Reconstruction is most visible in the capital. This new street was built with Turkish help. Turkey has also set up a huge military base in Mogadishu to train Somali soldiers.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Walls and fences
New villas spring up throughout town. Somalia's returning diaspora invests in Mogadishu's booming property market. So do politicians and other strongmen. Many of the new buildings are surrounded by high blast walls and concertina wire to fend off terrorists, criminals and rivals.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Green Zone
The airport region has become the expats' hub. Like Baghdad and Kabul, Mogadishu has a green zone. The United Nations and most of the returning diplomatic missions live and work in the vast compound which has developed around Mogadishu's International Airport. It is fenced off and guarded by African Union troops.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
City of murals
Most of Mogadishu's shopfronts sport hand-painted murals which add some much-needed color to a city slowly rising from its ruins.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Online shopping
Modern billboards are also conquering the streets, advertising online shopping for Arab fashion or application details for private educational institutions.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Not for all
The city's new attractions are out of reach for the many displaced people and the poor. Somalia's progress and stability will depend on the state's ability to win the trust of its people. Right now nearly seven million people, which is about half the country's population, depend on humanitarian aid.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Youth bulge
More than half of Somalia's population is under 18. The majority of citizens were born after the overthrow of Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 — the pivotal event that caused the country to become a failed state. The capital's youth, if not engaged meaningfully, often feel disenfranchised, adding to Somalia's continued vulnerability.
