As Drought Hits, Regional Ruler Dreams of Conquering Poverty With Oil

from All Africa

Garowe Online (Garowe)

By Yusuf Ali
Garowe

Parts of Somalia's semiautonomous State of Puntland are currently experiencing drought in villages, which has affected hundreds of nomadic families, the regional government's Interior Ministry said Monday.

Some villagers in the regions of Nugal, Mudug, Sool and Ayn are undergoing a drought due to scarce water resources, the Ministry said in a statement.

Adde Muse, president of Somalia's Puntland State

The Interior Ministry dispatched a committee to the aforementioned regions, which inspected remote villages and undertook a survey. Nomadic families have been adversely affected by a market decline in the demand for livestock, their main source of income, business sources said.

Awil Gurre, chairman of the government committee, told Garowe Online that he personally saw families severely affected by the drought.

He called on the Puntland State government and international and local humanitarian agencies to extend immediate assistance to the families, who are experiencing shortages in food, water and other necessities.

Even as the region undergoes drought, the incumbent administration of President Mohamud "Adde" Muse is vigorously pursuing the legalization of a controversial exploration contract inked in mid-2005 with a foreign firm.

President Muse chaired a Puntland Cabinet meeting today in the port city of Bossaso, which concluded with government ministers ratifying a document entitled "The Oil and Minerals Law of Puntland State Government."

The document will be handed to the Puntland Parliament for debate, officials said.

A confidential source at the Cabinet meeting told Garowe Online that Energy Minister Hassan "Alore" Osman entered the room and "read aloud" the document.

No copies of the document were handed to the Cabinet ministers, the source added.

It is not clear why Minister Alore behaved in such a manner, but his action is consistent with the shadiness surrounding Muse's ambitious exploration project from the onset.

Since 2005, Muse and his foreign partners - Australia's Range Resources, Ltd., and Canada-based Africa Oil Corp. - have been unable to begin exploration operations in Puntland, due to local and national opposition.

But the Puntland ruler remains steadfast in his support for exploration. Last week, a constitutional review committee introduced a revised Constitution that experts say is very favorable to President Muse and his controversial exploration agenda.

Muse has told numerous crowds that, in his belief, poverty can be conquered in Puntland by profits earned from the exploration and production of the region's natural resources potential.

But critics disagree, often accusing Muse's government of corruption and cite the public's growing distrust and lack of confidence in the incumbent administration.