Sunday June 1, 2025
Mogadishu (HOL) — Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has formally announced the launch of the National Consultation Forum, a high-level gathering of political and civil society leaders set to open in Mogadishu on June 15, 2025, as part of a broader effort to forge national consensus on key state-building priorities.
According to a statement from the President’s Office on Sunday, the forum follows weeks of private consultations with former national leaders, federal member state presidents, political parties, and civil society organizations. It is designed to provide a platform for an inclusive national dialogue on Somalia’s most pressing governance and security challenges.
The President outlined five priority areas for the forum, national security and the fight against terrorism, democratization and electoral processes, completion of the constitution, national unity, and reconciliation.
“We must engage in genuine consultations grounded in the collective interest of the Somali people,” President Hassan Sheikh said, calling for active participation from all stakeholders. Preparatory meetings will continue in the coming weeks to ensure wide representation and coordination.
A special committee, led by Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Hassan Macalin Mahmoud, has been appointed to oversee the technical preparations for the forum.
The announcement comes just hours after the Somali Salvation Forum, a coalition of key opposition groups chaired by former President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, accused the President of undermining unity and the state-building process. The opposition bloc expressed concern over the expired mandates of some federal member states and warned against what it sees as attempts by the President to centralize power and engineer electoral outcomes.
Regarding the electoral process, the opposition has rejected a return to the 2022 model, instead advocating for one-person, one-vote elections based on the 2012 provisional constitution and laws passed by the 9th and 10th parliaments, including the Direct Election Law.
