Call for Papers
Somali Roundtable:
Creating a Non State Actor’s Forum in Somalia

Presentation and Themes

In 2004, Saferworld started a programme in Somalia to establish a Non-State Actors (NSA) Forum. The overall objective of the NSA Forum is to enable civil society actors to engage more effectively with decision makers in government structures and with donors in support of poverty reduction, democracy and peace building. The programme aims to safeguard and expand the space available to civil society and to ensure accepted governance structures and procedures are put in place to increase the credibility and accountability of NSAs.

More specifically, the project aims to establish strategic links with an extensive range of civic and government institutions in support of objectives within the Cotonou Agreement. Through engaging with the EC within the framework of the Cotonou Agreement, NSAs can play a central role in the formulation and implementation of EC country assistance strategies. The Cotonou Agreement presents a genuine opportunity for Somali NSAs to engage with both the state and the international community on issues and policies which affect their lives.
In April 2005, Saferworld organised an awareness-raising workshop for Somali Non-State Actors on the Cotonou Agreement. During discussions, participants requested more information on how Somali NSAs can contribute within the framework. As a result, Saferworld has issued a call for papers to research the following themes:

Sectoral
• Access to Education: Recommendations for, and evaluation of, EC intervention strategy and policy considerations for the Education and Training Sector in Somalia. Topics of interest include: tertiary education and pastoral education.
• Health Sector: Informing the EC’s comprehensive health strategy for Somalia. Topics of interest include: health sector personnel, mechanisms for drug quality control; establishing effective public-private partnerships; addressing the needs of women and girls; HIV/AIDS.
• Private sector. What are the opportunities and benefits for NGOs and the private sector working together? Topics of interest include: reversing the brain drain; developing the banking sector (in particular utilising links between hawallahs in Somalia and foreign banks); supporting women’s involvement in the small business sector).
• Food security: Informing policy on issues including: distortions caused by food aid; livestock policy, gm food aid, water security (i.e, erection of dams in the Shebelle and Juba rivers), environmental concerns (such as the dumping of toxic wastes along the Somalia coast), banana exports.

Somali Non-State Actors
• Trust building: Forging a common understanding and ideas for functional cooperation between Somali civil society actors, the TFG and the different regional administrations.
• Promoting the participation of women: How can NSA structures and institutions play a role in influencing the gender and diversity policies of the administrations and the international community?
• Mapping of Somali NSAs: Are political fragmentations in Somalia still reflected in civil society organizations? What further capacity building is needed?
• Aid Frameworks: Ensuring that Somali experience and expertise informs the formulation of international donor policy and practice.
• Balancing intervention: How to ensure neutrality and impartiality in intervening in Somalia, in particular how to concentrate efforts on all areas of Somalia, despite practical difficulties.

Commissioned papers will be presented for discussion at a roundtable meeting in late November.
Research outputs will be produced in the region and disseminated via policy dialogue meetings, partners and regional networks, and the NSA Forum. The reports will be translated into Somali language. It is envisaged that the reports will feed into research reports compiled by other international and local agencies and into the ongoing process of documenting the engagement of non-state actors within the framework of Cotonou.

Submission of Abstracts
Abstracts (approximately 300 words, in English) can be sent
by e-mail to: tansorg@saferworld.org.uk

Abstracts should focus on one of the above themes. Commissioned papers must include recommendations that can be used in policy dialogue with authorities, other NSAs and the international community.

Key Dates
Deadline for submitting abstracts: 12 September 2005
Presentation at roundtable meeting: end November 2005
Deadline for submitting final paper: mid December 2005

Authors will be expected to incorporate comments on the paper presented at the roundtable meeting into their final draft. Payment will be made only once the final paper has been submitted in accordance with Saferworld editorial policy.

For more details please contact Thomas Ansorg (tansorg @ saferworld.org.uk).