Somalia approves amendments to president, system of government selection

Somalia's government has announced that the country will elect the president and other officials by direct suffrage from next year and move to a presidential system, ending the indirect voting system.

In past years, the president was elected by a vote of deputies, while tribal leaders and notables elected members of the federal parliament and regional councils.

The agreement was reached after a four-day meeting of the National Consultative Forum, during which he met with President Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud, Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Berri and federal state leaders.

The country was initially scheduled to transition to universal suffrage in 2020, but disagreements between politicians and continued insecurity across the country forced the government to maintain the indirect voting system.

The system is scheduled to be implemented in local elections scheduled for June 30, 2024, before elections for members of parliament and regional presidents on November 30 of the same year.

With the exception of the separatist Somaliland region, there have been no elections in Somalia on the "one person, one vote" principle since 1969 when former President Siad Barre took power.

The first step in this direction was taken last week in the semi-autonomous state of Puntland, where provincial council elections were held on this principle. These elections were welcomed and cited as an example by the international community.

According to a statement published by the Somali National News Agency (SUNA), the system of "individual elections" and direct voting will be introduced every 5 years from next year.

Along with the voting method, this agreement sets out broader reform frameworks for the Somali political system, by establishing a presidential system instead of the current parliamentary system.

SONA's statement noted that the state government structure would be modified, "the post of prime minister would be abolished and a presidential system would be established in which the president and vice president would be elected by direct vote of the people on a single card."

It was also agreed to establish two political parties in the country, stating that "the two political parties that obtain the majority of votes (in local elections) will become national political parties competing for seats in parliament and the presidency."