The Somaliland Peace and Development Journal (SPDJ) is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal published by the Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies of the University of Hargeisa. The journal’s core mission is to enhance understanding of peace, conflict management, and development through research and publication.
In its holistic multidisciplinary approach to research, the journal aims to increase the capacity of people to analyze and better understand the fundamental causes of social, economic, political, and environmental challenges through the facilitation of healthy and intellectual discussion.
Towards this goal, the journal foster the dialogue between academics, practitioners, and policymakers inside and outside of Somaliland on several issues related to peace, security, and development. Furthermore, the journal serves as a vehicle for broader dissemination of research findings to inform policymaking.
Towards this holistic objective, the journal focuses on the following thematic areas: conflict and development, political violence, violent extremism, governance and democracy in post-conflict settings, peace, conflict, and education, migration and climate change, and security.
Vol. 3 Articles
Effects of Droughts on Pastoralist and Agro-Pastoralist Women in Somaliland Maria Abdilahi Gaheir | DOI: https://doi.org/10.55569/spdj.24599
Abstract
Droughts have long been affecting the Somali society, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions.
Although these persistent and recurrent droughts have affected all the members of the community
in Somaliland, both in urban and rural areas, they have had a rather adverse impact on pastoral
and agro-pastoral women. These vulnerable groups of society become victims of changing climate
and ecological patterns than any other section of the community as droughts put greater risk on
their livelihoods. This study assesses the impact of droughts on Somaliland’s pastoralist and agropastoralist women. The study has relied on both primary and secondary data...
Emerging Foreign Bases in the Horn of Africa: A Sign of Hope or a Dilemma in Regional Security Amran Mohamoud Hassan | DOI: https://doi.org/10.55569/spdj.24600
Abstract
The Horn of Africa has been a region of conflict and strife for the last six decades. The involvement
of external powers and actors extremely impacted on the security and stability of the entire region.
This study links the region’s instability to the presence of foreign military bases both before the
demise of the Soviet Union and post-9/11. While the region has been a victim of geopolitical
problems from the known history, which has taken a negative toll on the security of the region, reestablishing foreign military bases in the Horn of Africa has implications for the security of the
region in the long-term.
Interrelations Between Education and Peace in Somaliland: Perceptions from University Students Zuhur Yasin Ibrahim | DOI: https://doi.org/10.55569/spdj.24601
Abstract
Wars and violent conflicts inevitably affect institutions providing social services the most,
including but not limited to, education and educational facilities of any country and the community
within. The war and conflict with Somalia’s ruthless military regime from 1980–1991 in
Somaliland affected both the facilities and their enrollment rate. The military deliberately shelled
the urban centers and rural areas and all educational facilities across the country were in rubble
and ruins. However, Somaliland citizens never gave up and have succeeded in their efforts to
recover and rebuild their social, economic, and political infrastructures.
Post-Conflict State Reconstruction in Somaliland: An African Perspective of Statebuilding Processes Mohamed Farah Hirsi | DOI: https://doi.org/10.55569/spdj.24602
Abstract
In January 1991, the central government of the Somali Democratic Republic collapsed as a result
of local insurgency against Mohamed Siyad known who is also known as ‘Barre’. Somaliland, a
former British protectorate which had united with Somalia in 1960 with the aim of uniting the
divided Somali people in the Horn of Africa, declared its unilateral withdrawal from almost three
decades union with Somalia but remains unrecognized by the rest of world. This paper will explore
Somaliland’s journey of peace and statebuilding
