[philneville]

I agree, Somalia has the potential to be Africa's Norway, only its too chaotic, once a united Goverment is sorted out things will start moving very quickly

[philneville]

Somalia says ready for oil, mineral deals in months
Sun Aug 28, 2005 3:14 PM GMT

By Andrew Cawthorne

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Somalia's fledgling government said on Sunday it should be ready to start offering oil, gas and mineral concessions "in a few months" -- but sternly warned foreign firms from dealing with the wrong people.

The Horn of Africa nation's resources were attracting attention from the West, including major oil producers, before it descended into chaos in 1991 with the toppling of former dictator Mohammed Siad Barre.

Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi told reporters in Nairobi foreign firms should now deal exclusively with the new Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia.

In the 14th bid to re-install central government in Somalia, the TFG was formed last year in the relative security of neighbouring Kenya and is now trying to set up at home, hampered by internal divisions and the continued power of warlords.

Gedi cited the case of an unnamed Australian-led joint venture that he said had offered some advances to authorities in the northern region of Puntland for oil and gas exploration.

"Foreign companies/investors should stop their attempts of dealing with local administrations/authorities like in the case of Puntland State of Somalia without prior consent from the Transitional Federal Government," he said in a statement.

"Any violation of this statement will result in negative consequences and the external and/or internal culprits will take the responsibilities on their shoulders."

Somalia lies across the Gulf of Aden from the Arabian peninsula and next to Ethiopia's Ogaden region, which has proven reserves of natural gas.

"CONTINUOUS" INTEREST

Companies including Total, Amoco, Chevron and Conoco and Phillips -- which have since merged into ConocoPhillips -- held exploration concessions in northern Somalia in the 1980s.

Gedi said his government was "continuously" receiving applications to explore, produce and market Somalia's resources.

"But unless the government puts in place specific legislations for natural resources management such as a national hydrocarbon law, it will be categorically impossible to give concessions for exploration and production of such natural resources," he said.

Gedi said "it will take a few months" to complete the preparatory and legislative work for concessions.

"I appeal to the friendly countries of the world and the international organisations to help Somalia in safeguarding its natural resources from any illegal violators," he added.

The Western firms declared force majeure in Somalia following the collapse of the central government in 1991.

That is a clause in a contract exempting the parties from obligations as a result of conditions beyond their control.

Analysts say 14 years of war and anarchy in Somalia has left a complex legal legacy. Some of the old exploration concessions were in a part of northern Somalia that is now within the territory of Somaliland, which declared independence in 1991.

"We will review all the old concessions," Gedi said, without giving more details.

Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf told Reuters last week he had not read the old contracts but planned to see them. Gedi said foreign governments including China had been talking to the Somali government about possible investment in energy.


© Reuters 2005. All Rights Reserved.

[oli]

This is a good format, FYI:

Link

blah excerpt blah

This is not:

blah blah FULL ARTICLE INCLUDING COPYRIGHT NOTICE AT END FOR BONUS POINTS blah

Saves us from loading up google and finding the original source, don't you think?

http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/15 ... 200246.htm

EDIT: Oh yah, and "Somalia has the potential of being Africa's Norway". Good one.

[philneville]

Somalia govt to disarm militia groups, says PM 28.08.05 By Ken Ramani
A national disarmament exercise will be launched across Somalia in the next few weeks.
The Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi yesterday said his government would take over Mogadishu in three months time and the capital will not be spared of the exercise.
Mogadishu, said to be the most dangerous city in Africa, is controlled by warlords in the Cabinet but are reluctant to disarm their militia.

Speaking at the Somalia liaison office in Nairobi, Gedi denied sentiments expressed by Speaker Sheriff Hassan Sheikh Aden that foreign elements were being recruited into the Somali army.
"Those were allegations that must be treated as so. No truth in the claims," said Gedi.
President Abdillahi Yusuf last week said the disarmament exercise will be peaceful adding that all armed groups will be requested to surrender their weapons.
"No force will be applied. The disarmament exercise is for the interests of the whole country," Yusuf was quoted as saying.

The Prime Minister returned to Nairobi on Saturday night after a five-day trip to Rome.
He said he held fruitful consultations with the Italian authorities who pledged financial and material aid to his country."The Italian government promised to help build schools, train civil service staff and rebuild infrastructure. The aid will be disbursed very soon," said Gedi.
The Prime Minister warned multi-national companies interested in investing in the country’s natural resources that they risked losses should they not seek authority from the transitional government.

He singled out the state of Puntland that is about to issue oil exploration rights to an Australian company.
"Foreign companies/investors should stop their attempts of dealing with local authorities without prior written consent from the government. Any violation against this statement will result in negative consequences and the external/internal culprits will shoulder the consequences," warned Gedi.
He, however, said his order did not apply in the case of Somaliland, a breakaway region that used to be part of the greater Somalia.

Noting that his government is continuously receiving applications regarding exploration, production and marketing of natural resources such as minerals, natural gas and oil, Gedi said unless specific legislations are put in place, it might be impossible to give concessions.
He appealed to the international community to help Somalia in safeguarding its natural resources from illegal exploitors.
The PM said previous agreements entered with foreign firms will be reviewed once his government puts in place new rules.
Gedi said investigations are going on to establish the nature and extent of toxic waste dumping in parts of Somalia.

[philneville]

Karamatullah K. Ghori
The author is a retired Pakistani ambassador who served 35 years in active diplomacy (Algeria, Mali, Mauritania, Kuwait, Iraq, Turkey, China and Macedonia).

----------------------------------------------

so not really your stereotypical high on drugs conspiracy nut.

P.S When I say Africa's Norway its only a comparison of the Oil production compared to the continent, not the actual state of the country, that ofcourse would be a silly prediction. If Somalia reached the stability of Bosnia I'd be a happy man.

[philneville]

Well if you've been there you'd agree alot of it is like a Mad Max movie, obviously its not going to be the same but is it the closest thing right now?
Yes or no? If not, which country is then?

[Jack]

I agree - Somalia is probably an accurate vision of the future.

[MD]

Somalia as a future world example has about as much chance as the Jetsons as the future image.

[philneville]

I said the CLOSEST thing we have right now, the CLOSEST EXAMPLE.

Understand?

Now is it a yes or no, if no, then tell me what country is then and without refering to cartoons.

[Macsporan]

No.

American in the 1850's is the closest example to our future.

One long Western. Who wouldn't want that?

[philneville]

Current closest example, we can go back, we know that but what can we look at now, to give us some sort of idea, of how it will be even if it isn't the same.

[Novus]

It really depends on what time frame you are looking at and what part of the world. I suspect much of the third world and particularly Africa will look like Somalia during the time frame of 2010 to 2050. Post 2050 Africa will go back to tribalism of the pre 1800s era.

The Western world including the US, Canada, and Europe will resemble the early days of post USSR Russia during the 2010 to 2050 time frame. In between that time there will be issolated cases of wars and anarchy. Los Angeles will be abondoned to peak oil like New Orleans was abondoned because of Global Warming. LA is desert that can't support the 6 million people that live there without cheap oil. The depopulation will likely be the result of a large earthquake. Post 2050 the Western world will resemble somewhat a mix between 1860s light industrialism and 1400s Fuedalism.

The East mainly China and Japan could come to resemble North Korea. Their culture values order over freedom. They will be half starved but they will have the least chaos because they are more accepting of brutal governments. If parts of the Western world are turned into Mad Max it would be because the people prefere that over dictatorship.

[I_Like_Plants]

The USA's southern areas after the War Of Northern Aggression might be a good example.

[MD]

The world will continue to have wide variation in culture, population, prosperity, and climate. sure some areas will look like somalia today, some will look like buffalo NY, some will look like Hong Kong.

There is no single image that answers the question

[MacG]

Ahem... What exactly DOES Somalia look like today? Are there any recent firsthand reports? From other places than Mogadishu that is. No rumours, urban legends and similar stuff, only firsthand reports please. Hargesia? Awdal? Whats going on there nowdays?

[I_Like_Plants]

I was reading, on the Gutenberg site, Mark Twain's "A Tramp Abroad", wherein he travels around Europe around 1870s I think, interesting look at a different society, spa-baths are where the water comes hot out of the earth and you go there if you like spas so much, travel is walking around, or you take the train, etc., hotels are nice, "nice" probably means linens washed once in a while and plenty of camphor, ceder, etc used to keep bugs down and a nice pitcher of water to wash with and pour a drink (Twain talks in another work about drinking Mississippi river water thick with mud when growing up) and a chamber pot with flowers painted on. There are telling glimpses of the local people here and there, people keep flocks of geese and I'm sure daily life was quite frugal. But there was an equilibrium, it was a sustainable life.

That's the far future, you guys are right, the nearer future will resemble what Russia's gone through.

[philneville]

It really depends on what time frame you are looking at and what part of the world. I suspect much of the third world and particularly Africa will look like Somalia during the time frame of 2010 to 2050. Post 2050 Africa will go back to tribalism of the pre 1800s era.

The Western world including the US, Canada, and Europe will resemble the early days of post USSR Russia during the 2010 to 2050 time frame. In between that time there will be issolated cases of wars and anarchy. Los Angeles will be abondoned to peak oil like New Orleans was abondoned because of Global Warming. LA is desert that can't support the 6 million people that live there without cheap oil. The depopulation will likely be the result of a large earthquake. Post 2050 the Western world will resemble somewhat a mix between 1860s light industrialism and 1400s Fuedalism.

The East mainly China and Japan could come to resemble North Korea. Their culture values order over freedom. They will be half starved but they will have the least chaos because they are more accepting of brutal governments. If parts of the Western world are turned into Mad Max it would be because the people prefere that over dictatorship.

Great post

[lotrfan55345]

Mogadishu(sp?) has 150mB/s internet access for $5 a month...

[lotrfan55345]

The East mainly China and Japan could come to resemble North Korea. Their culture values order over freedom. They will be half starved but they will have the least chaos because they are more accepting of brutal governments. If parts of the Western world are turned into Mad Max it would be because the people prefere that over dictatorship.

I can tell you, for all Asian countries without a communist government, it would NEVER look like NK... In the Phillippines I simply cannot imagine people worshiping some sort of Kim-Jong-Il type person, it would be more like a "I love my own" situation".

[philneville]

Mogadishu(sp?) has 150mB/s internet access for $5 a month...

Mogadishu and most of South Somalia is the most chaotic, it has some radio, some internet and ofcourse some telephone, road tolls run by child soldiers with rifles everywhere, the goverment is too scared to move back there and its a capital city of 2million run by warlords, completely different world, you have to see it to belive it.

The self declared states of Somaliland and Puntland are stable in comparison, but the capital is the closest thing I have seen with my eyes to how life might be in the future, the people still cope and alot of it is about sharing, you scratch my back I'll scratch yours kind of mentality, also its best to stay in your clan area.

I think, in the future, Somalia will be one of the countries to cope best with the Oil wars, since it has had had the most prepartion after 14 years without a goverment and won't feel the shock as hard as others, it may seem a mess now but who knows in 100 years it might be one the most stable in Africa.

The only problem is the potential Oil in Northern Somalia, and the fact that its so close to the Middle East