They say Somalia’s youth are the future of the nation. True — but they never tell you this future comes with no arrival date. “You aren’t the future, you are the present, do not be misled by older politicians”, Said Nuradin Aden Dirie, in a speech to the gathering in Martisoor Hall tonight.
The numbers don’t lie: 75% of Somalis are youth. The majority. The muscle. The energy. The ones who should be driving state-building. But instead, they’re treated like free campaign posters and disposable labor for warlord-turned-politicians.
Every speech is the same recycled nonsense:
“The youth are the backbone of the nation.”
Yes, and Somalia has been walking with a broken back since the Civil War.
Politicians love the youth’s naivety and inexperience — perfect qualities for a loyal servant. Some lucky ones break through the unemployment wall, not because of talent or hard work, but through nepotism. Their reward? To serve as obedient houseboys and tea-bearers for the same ex-militia leaders who once looted their parents’ homes.
In Mogadishu, “youth empowerment” means giving a microphone to a 25-year-old who reads a speech written by a 70-year-old ex-warlord wearing imported Italian shoes. In Garowe, it’s football caps with Puntland X Anniversary painted — as if polyester hat can fix corruption. In Hargeisa, it’s telling graduates to “be patient” while every government job goes to the ruling party’s nephews.
Meanwhile, the real state-building work — the cleaning of streets, the running of small schools, the starting of businesses — happens quietly in neighborhoods and villages, far from donor-funded workshops and ministerial selfies. No one cuts a ribbon for those youth. No one calls Al Jazeera to report on them.
And still, the myth continues: youth are the “leaders of tomorrow.” But tomorrow is always postponed. And the bus to the future? Still stuck in the mud, while the ministers drive past in stolen Land Cruisers yelling, “Your turn is coming!”
If Somalia truly valued its youth, they wouldn’t be the permanent audience to state-building — they’d be the ones writing the script. Until then, the politicians will keep clapping for them on stage while robbing them backstage.
Warsame Policy & Media Network (WAPMEN) 