After two years of reluctance, the European Union has signalled a willingness to fund the African Union’s peacekeeping force in Somalia, indicating a “continuity of support” – the clearest clue that suggests the bloc will resume its role as the primary funder – giving a lifeline to the cash-strapped mission that is concluding a tumultuous year and preparing for another in the Horn of Africa nation.“We are committed to ensuring continuity of the EU’s support. The exact modalities will be announced once the support package is finalised,” a spokesperson for the EU told The EastAfrican in response to whether the bloc’ support is for a year or the five-year duration of the force’s mandate.

The EU has not yet made financial contributions to the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (Aussom) for the 2025 operations, but sources familiar with the matter suggest that recent engagements between Brussels and AU technical officials have been promising.“The scope and amount of the EU’s support is discussed and agreed by the 27 Member States. We will announce it once the overall package is agreed,” the spokesperson said. United Nations Security Council documents show that the EU is expected to announce funding for Aussom in early 2026.

Financial support is crucial as Somalia continues to face security challenges from Al-Shabaab, amid reduced security and development spending by international partners like the US, further weakening the Horn of Africa’s defences, the International Crisis Group says.

On 4 October, for instance, Al-Shabaab militants disguised as security officers attacked the Godka Jilicow prison in Mogadishu, near the presidential palace. The facility housed members of the Al-Qaeda-affiliate and other high-profile detainees, violence and conflict mapping tool Acled reported.

Between June and October, joint operations by Somali forces and AU peacekeepers registered significant gains, recapturing three strategic towns from Al-Shabaab, but analysts say the militants are still lurking 40 kilometres outside of Mogadishu and control many parts of central Somalia.

Critics accused Brussels of sitting on the fence and watching the AU mission struggle after the US walked away blocking the outfit’s proposed main source of funding through UN-assessed contributions via the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2719.

The Resolution, passed in 2023, aimed to cover 75 percent of Aussom’s five-year budget worth $832.5 million, as the most predictable and sustainable source of funding, with the AU required to mobilise the remainder from other partners of Somalia.

New partners that have come forward include Japan, Korea, China collectively providing $4.5 million, and in September this year, Italy and Spain also pledged $1 million each.

Major cash contributions have come from the UK – the penholder on Somalia – which announced $22 million in September, while the AU put on the table $20 million from its Peace Fund. However, this remains significantly below the mission’s annual budget of $166.5 million.

Amid the search for new donors, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait initially backed the mission – including the offer by Qatar to host the donors pledging conference in Doha, which flopped. According to reports, Gulf states have since cooled off their support for Aussom.

Various reports have indicated that the EU has earmarked €60 million to be split between Aussom and the Somali National Armed Forces. However, sources indicate that based on recent discussions, Brussels will consider a new figure as its financial package for the AU mission.

This marks a major shift from Brussels’ stance over the past two years. The bloc had previously threatened not to fund a new mission in Somalia unless other donors committed to fair burden-sharing in footing budgets for the AU’s peacekeeping missions.

© Copyright 2022 Nation Media Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).