Somalia

 

This week we are looking at Somalia, I was asked by Debby over at https://myshastahome.blogspot.com/ if I was going to post about Somalia so that’s what I am doing.

Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continent of Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, and the Indian Ocean to the east.

The population is 18.14 million it has two official languages Somali and Arabic.

Based on gross domestic product, in 2021 Somalia was the third-poorest country in the world (after Burundi and South Sudan). In international assessments of its business climate, Somalia regularly lands on one of the last places.

The Somali shilling is the official currency of Somalia. It is subdivided into 100 senti, cents or centesimi.

The capital is Mogadishu, locally known as Xamar or Hamar, it is the most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Ocean for millennia and has an estimated urban population of 2,610,483.

The Somalia flag features a blue base with a white five-pointed star at its center. The flag was adopted on October 12, 1954 and was inspired by the flag of the United Nations. Somalia gained independence from Italy in 1960 and united with the former British Somaliland to form the current Somalia.

The national animal of Somalia is the African leopard. Leopards are commonly seen in Somalia and are featured on the country's coat of arms.

The national flower of Somalia is the endangered King Protea flower which symbolizes change and transformation.

The coat of arms of Somalia was adopted on October 10, 1956 and features a golden framed shield of the Somali flag supported by two Leopards standing on spears. The Leopard is a common animal seen in Somalia. Leopards are a common motif in Somali culture.

Somalia's current constitution, the Provisional Constitution of the Federal Republic of Somalia, was adopted on August 1, 2012. It was created as a provisional document and has been under review for a long time. 

The constitution was based on a political settlement that included: Federalism, Clan power-sharing, Regular elections, and an inclusive spirit to build consensus. 

The constitution established Somalia as a parliamentary system of government, with the President as head of state and the Prime Minister as head of government. It also established Islam as the state religion and required all laws to comply with shari'a. 

In 2022, President Mohamud pledged to create a new constitution and said that further delays were "not an option". 

The majority of people in Somalia are Sunni Muslim, with the Federal Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs estimating that over 99% of the population identify as such. The country's constitution makes Islam the state religion, and converting to another religion is illegal in some areas and socially unacceptable in all.

Christianity is a minority religion in Somalia, In 2020, the US Department of State estimated that there were about 1,000 Christians in Somalia. Most modern-day Christians are from the Bantu ethnic minority group or are descended from Italian colonists. 

Christians in Somalia have faced persecution, including the kidnapping and rape of Christians in 2008. The Somali Church was driven underground during the Islamist uprising of 1991. There is one Catholic diocese for the entire country, the Diocese of Mogadishu. Orthodox Christianity came to coastal areas of the Somalia in early 2nd and 3rd century.

Do not travel to Somalia due to crime, terrorism, civil unrest, health issues, kidnapping, piracy, and lack of availability of routine consular services. Country Summary: Violent crime, such as kidnapping and murder, is common throughout Somalia. Illegal roadblocks are widespread.