A WDM Policy Essay By Ismail H. Warsame Introduction: The Wrong Debate For more than half a century, Somalia has been arguing over the wrong question. Politicians, academics, civil society activists, and foreign advisers alike have repeatedly asked how the clan can be eliminated from Somali politics. Others, equally convinced of the impossibility of such … Continue reading Beyond the Clan: Why Somalia’s Future Depends on Making Citizenship More Important Than Lineage →
Warsame Policy & Media Network (WAPMEN)Critical analysis, news and commentaries July 16, 2026 By Ismail H. Warsame Ports do not fall silent without cause. When cranes stop lifting, containers remain stranded, and entire commercial districts shut down, the explanation in Bosaso today lies in far more than a dispute over new port fees. The shutdown … Continue reading Bosaso Port Shutdown: DP World Disputes and Puntland’s Fragile Trade Governance →
By Ismail Warsame, Warsame Digital Media (WDM) Federalism was adopted in Somalia as a political response to state collapse, clan conflict, exclusion, and the fear of renewed centralised authoritarian rule. More than a decade after the adoption of the Provisional Constitution in 2012, however, the country’s federal system remains incomplete, contested, and vulnerable to political … Continue reading Somalia’s Federalism: A Necessary Framework Still Searching for a Settlement →
By Ismail H. WarsamePorts do not fall silent by accident.When the cranes stop moving, containers remain stranded, merchants close their shops, and an entire commercial city shuts its doors, the problem is rarely about taxes alone. Taxes are merely the spark. The real fire has usually been burning inside government institutions for years.That is precisely … Continue reading Why Somalia’s Busiest Northern Port Suddenly Went Silent →
BREAKING A fee hike, a merchant boycott, and a fight over who really controls Bosaso If you’ve driven along the Bosaso–Garowe highway in the past couple of weeks, you’ll have seen the traffic jam that tells the whole story: dozens of cargo trucks parked and going nowhere, while out past the breakwater, ships sit at … Continue reading Why Somalia’s Busiest Northern Port Just Went Silent →
By Ismail Warsame, Warsame Digital Media (WDM) MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s constitutional reform is often presented as a legal and technical exercise involving articles, clauses, committees and parliamentary votes. But the central issue is much larger. It concerns the kind of state Somalis want to build after decades of conflict, state collapse, displacement and fragmented authority. … Continue reading Somalia’s Constitutional Reform Must Become a National Settlement, Not an Elite Bargain →
Warsame Policy & Media Network (WAPMEN) — Critical analysis, news and commentariesTalking truth to power in an undemocratic and tribal context Veteran Somali political writer Ismail Haji Warsame has released a new two-volume book on contemporary Somali political history. The books are now available through major international retailers and digital libraries, including Amazon (in multiple country stores), … Continue reading A New Resource on Contemporary Somali Political History →
By Ismail H. Warsame | Warsame Digital Media (WDM) Preface When the Puntland State of Somalia was founded in August 1998, it was more than a political experiment: it was an organized act of resistance against national collapse. As Director General at the Presidency, I stood at the center of a new state trying to … Continue reading My Untold Political and Administrative Disagreements with President Abdullahi Yusuf: Inside the Puntland Presidency -A Political Memoir Essay →
The Ministry of Discouragement Never Sleeps By Ismail H. Warsame A friend of mine said something the other day that was both hilarious and tragic. “If you share a business idea with government officials or businesspeople in Mogadishu, they immediately become curious. They ask questions. They want to know how it works. Some even try … Continue reading Puntland: Where Business Ideas Go to Die →
The Advice That Was Ignored: Puntland’s Lost Opportunity for National Leadership By Ismail H. Warsame, MSc, PhD Candidate History often records not only the decisions leaders make, but also the advice they refuse to hear. In politics, ignoring sound counsel can prove more costly than making an honest mistake. Puntland today finds itself confronting exactly … Continue reading →
