Somaliland heads to the polls with international recognition at stake

Voters in Somaliland head to the polls on Wednesday to choose a president at a time when the breakaway Somali region sees international recognition within reach after three decades of de facto self-rule.

Somaliland, which occupies a strategic position near the entryway to the Red Sea, declared independence from the Mogadishu government in 1991 but has not been recognised by any other country, restricting access to international finance and the ability of its 6 million people to travel.

The Hargeisa government is hoping to soon finalise a preliminary deal signed in January with landlocked Ethiopia that would grant Addis Ababa coastal land in exchange for diplomatic recognition. Hargeisa is also hopeful US President-elect Donald Trump will be favourable to its cause.

President Muse Bihi Abdi, in power since 2017, is standing for re-election against the main opposition party's candidate, Abdirahman Cirro. The vote was originally scheduled for 2022, but lawmakers opted to extend Bihi's term by two years.

The candidates differ on domestic issues, but both have expressed support for the memorandum of understanding with Ethiopia. Mohamed A. Mohamoud, Somaliland's representative to Kenya, told reporters that the government would finalise the deal after the election, regardless of who wins.

Somaliland's democratic credentials

The agreement has soured Mogadishu's relations with Addis Ababa, which is a major contributor to a peacekeeping force in Somalia fighting against Islamist militants there, and drawn Somalia closer to Ethiopia's historic rivals, Egypt and Eritrea.

Somaliland is also optimistic that the incoming Trump administration will revisit Washington's longstanding recognition of Mogadishu's sovereignty over Somaliland.

Several leading State Department officials who worked on Africa policy during Trump's first term have publicly voiced support for recognising Somaliland.

"We are hopeful that the new administration will defy some of the (traditional) American policy," Mohamoud said.

Mohamoud said the competitive, multi-party election was proof of Somaliland's democratic credentials. Somaliland has mostly enjoyed peace since achieving autonomy in 1991, just as Somalia plunged into a civil war from which it has yet to emerge.