Louise Bernard with AFP 11 a.m., July 8, 2022

Appeared three months ago, "Bilan Média" has the particularity of being composed solely of women.

He intends to denounce the status of women in Somalia, an ultra-conservative country.

A project that is funded by the United Nations Development Program.

Among the few subjects produced is an interview with Foreign Minister Fawzia Yusuf Adan. 

They are six, all under 28 and have just created the first 100% female media in Somalia.

For the past three months, 

Bilan Média

 - Bilan means Beauty in Somali - has been broadcasting content on Daslan, the Mogadishu radio and television channel, and on social networks to highlight the condition of women in a country that is both conservative, religious and patriarchal.

Unusual subjects in an ultra-conservative country

A project that is funded by the United Nations Development Program.

Among the few topics is an interview with former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fawzia Yusuf Adan, a report on the health situation of women in a camp for displaced people, another on a young girl who became a mother at 16 who is going back to school… Completely unusual topics in a country that still has no sexual offenses law – a draft is still pending since 2014.

This shows that the condition of women is difficult in Somalia.

According to the United Nations, 45% of them are married before the age of 18 and 98% undergo genital mutilation.

In 2018, the country was in fourth place in a sad ranking erected by the Thomas Reuters Foundation: that of the most dangerous states for women.

Behind India, Afghanistan and Syria.

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Seeing such an initiative in such a country is therefore a rarity that requires a lot of courage.

“About 80% of our programs will focus on topics that people may find outrageous.

Society must be informed of these stories,” Nasrin Mohamed Ibrahim, who heads Bilan Média

 at the age of 21

, told AFP  .

"As women, we feel the same pain"

She wants to accompany a certain and slight change of mentalities that she sees taking place in the country.

"Many women want to tell their story to seek justice," says Nasrin Mohamed Dahir.

She recalls a case of alleged gang rape and murder of a young woman in Mogadishu, which she covered in 2020: "Her parents decided to talk about it. I myself questioned her father and the case is currently before the courts"

"We recently did a report on a 16-year-old single mother," said the youngest member of the team, Shukri Mohamed Abdi, 19.

"She has returned to school to continue her education and we have presented the difficulties she is experiencing and her ambitions for the future."