To many Ugandans, Somalia is where our soldiers are on a peace-keeping mission or it has been at war forever. It gets murkier when Somaliland comes into the picture. Only few can tell the difference.
Hadrian Mutibwa and Walter Ssevvume, young geologists from Makerere University, had this same impression of the Horn of Africa. Though Mutibwa says, “I had heard about Somaliland”, his colleague Ssevvume “never heard of Somaliland.” That was before being part of a team that did a mineral exploration in the mostly arid but peaceful country earlier this year.
Though Somalia and Somaliland share history, culture, language and other ties, they are distinct when it comes to governance. While the former is engulfed in conflict and violence, the latter enjoys some stability and steady progress.
“The story of Somaliland is a bit parallel to Uganda’s. After a civil war, they set about rebuilding the country,” notes Dr Andreas Schumann, a lecturer/researcher at Makerere University, who led the exploration team. However, the difference is that Somaliland declared itself independent but has not been recognised.