UPR Sexual Rights Database

National Report:
Para 13) The Ministry of Women and Human Rights (MWHR) advocates for the inclusion of vulnerable groups in this crucial process. This Ministry is focused on making sure that groups such as women, youth and minorities receive equitable representation in the new regional States' institutions. The FGS works with AMISOM to ensure that newly established States have access to humanitarian assistance.

Para 20) ... In addition, efforts are being put into including vulnerable groups, such as women, minorities and youth in the decision-making process by giving them adequate representation in the different committees debating these issues ...

Para 26) The government has supported 26 legal internships since the last UPR report, including female interns. Providing them with exposure in the public sector, including key ministries, courts and the police, where they gather on-the-job work experience. These graduates are now working with the police, the Attorney General's office, the judiciary, legal aid centres, NGOs and the Parliament.

Para 62) The FGS is committed to work with and utilise the significant experience of the civil society organisations (CSO), which has been built during the civil war period. Somali CSO have been widely consulted by the government on a wide range of topics for which the government has been formulating policies. Several ministries and senior Government officials have held regular discussions with civil society actors including ... women associations.

Para 82) The Constitution prohibits discrimination of any individual on any grounds as stated in Article 11 (3). Concerning labor rights of women, Article 24 (5) ensures that "... particularly women, have a special right of protection from sexual abuse, segregation and discrimination in the work place. Every labour law and practice shall comply with gender equality in the work place." Article 27 (5) guarantees that "... women [...] who have long suffered discrimination get the necessary support to realise their socio-economic rights." These provisions bode well for Somali women who, historically, have been disempowered by cultural and societal dynamics.

Para 85) Seats of the Federal Parliament to fill the women's minimum quota of 30% have been agreed upon. However, it has proven challenging to implement this agreement as it has no legal grounds to support the enforcement of the aforementioned quota. After the country's general election in September 2012, only 14% women were elected as MPs. The percentage of female ministers in the first cabinet after the election was 20% (2 out of a total of 10 ministers). Nevertheless, the government is optimistic that women participation in politics and governance will increase significantly in the coming years. The MWHR is campaigning throughout the regions of Somalia to encourage local representatives to include women in the federal states formation process.

UN Compilation:
Para 17) In November 2014, a letter concerning discriminatory provisions against women in nationality legislation was sent by the Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice. According to the information received, the 1962 Somali Citizenship Law provided that only children of Somali fathers acquired Somali citizenship.

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 10) AI reported the establishment of the Ministry of Women's Affairs and Human Rights by the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) ...

Para 68) SLNHRC stated that the political participation of women was still minimal in "Somaliland", with only one woman in the parliament and only four women among cabinet ministers.

National Report:
Para 11) Somalia has intensified its engagement and cooperation with international human rights treaty bodies and mechanisms since the last UPR cycle. The MoWHRD has led consultations with diverse groups of stakeholders on the path to ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). This consultation focused on familiarizing the stakeholders with this core human rights convention and Somalia’s respective rights and obligations therein. Moreover, in 2017 the Minister of Women and Human Rights Development held consultations with the CEDAW Chairperson in New York, in the margins of the UN General Assembly, to discuss Somalia’s potential ratification as well as broad-based advocacy efforts to ensure the public understands the need for Somalia to ratify this core human rights convention. Correspondingly, the MoWHRD has led a CEDAW benchmarking study tour in 2019 to Egypt for the purposes of understanding, from a comparative perspective, other countries’ experiences with the ratification processes to inform Somalia’s own ratification process.

UN Compilation:
Para 2) … Somalia has not ratified the CEDAW …

National Report:
Para 10) Following extensive consultations and advocacy for the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the FGS signed the convention on 2 October 2018 and ratified it on 6 August 2019.

UN Compilation:
Para 2) Somalia ratified the CRPD on 6 August 2019.

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 3) JS7 positively noted that, in … 2018 Somalia ratified …the CRPD.