On 17 - 18 November, the IIJ organised a workshop on enhancing parliamentary understanding of the Somali international judicial cooperation (IJC) draft law in Nairobi, Kenya.
Generously funded by Global Affairs Canada | Affaires mondiales Canada, this workshop provided an opportunity for Somali Parliamentarians to get acquainted with international judicial cooperation principles and practices to understand the importance of equipping Somalia with a clear and enforceable law on IJC.
His Excellency Hassan Moallin Mohamod Sheikhali, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs of Somalia, gave opening remarks alongside representatives of the Somali Federal Parliament, Senator Naima Hassan H. Mohamoud and Representative Mohamed Burale, highlighting the importance of strengthening IJC in Somalia and the East Africa region. The IIJ reflected on how Somalia could cement its position as a key partner in the fight against global crimes through the adoption of the IJC law. The Institute was honoured to have been able to contribute to the preparation of the draft law and welcomed Members of the Federal Parliament, the Attorney General’s Office, and experts from the Ministry of Justice to take part in these important discussions.
The overall objective of this follow-on project is to further enhance international judicial cooperation mechanisms in the East African region, focusing on Kenya and Somalia, to effectively address cross-border security threats. This will be achieved by building on the progress accomplished under Phase 1 of the project, first, through continued implementation of the Kenyan and Somali national road maps. The national road maps were developed under Phase I by representatives of both countries and highlight where bottlenecks and gaps are in terms of IJC mechanisms as well as some of the solutions and actions to be taken to address them.
Somalia has made notable progress by drafting a new IJC law with IIJ support, which has been approved by the Cabinet and submitted to Parliament at the end of November 2024 for discussion for consideration. While the legislative process continues, the IIJ recommends raising Parliamentarians’ awareness of the importance of an IJC framework and further strengthening the skills of practitioners involved in IJC. The IIJ intends to continue its support in coordination with other key partners such as UNODC, EUCAP Somalia, and ODPP Kenya.