SOMALIA - Mogadishu University: Success Amidst Turmoil

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 NAIROBI 001601 SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/E AND A/S CARSON E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV EAID KPAO SOCI SO SUBJECT: SOMALIA - Mogadishu University: Success Amidst Turmoil -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. Mogadishu University, opened in September 1997, stands as a tremendous success, even while operating in Mogadishu's tumultuous environment. Despite the violent civil conflict that continues to engulf Somalia's capital, the university continues to provide higher education to Somalis and has graduated a full class of students each year. In the face of overwhelming obstacles, students continue to take classes and move between various campuses to avoid areas of conflict. Women's enrollment has increased substantially, and the university continues to develop plans to expand its faculties and campuses throughout the country. End Summary. -------------- Mogadishu University Remains Open: Despite All Odds -------------- ¶2. Somali National University, established in 1970, was closed permanently in 1990, destroyed by the country's civil war. Over the next seven years, Somali intellectuals and former professors attempted to establish a non-state university to ensure the possibility of higher education in Somalia. Because education had previously been in the hands of the government, the idea of private education and paying for school was new for most people. At that time, amidst ongoing civil conflict, no one in Somalia believed that a university could be founded. Abdurahman Abdullahi, a founding member of Mogadishu University, and the current university chairman, told us "there was a lack of money and institutions, and the country was on fire." ¶3. Despite all odds, Mogadishu University (MU) opened on 22 September 1997, in the presence of four founding members and five teaching staff. The first class had 215 students in 3 faculties: Education, Law and Sharia, and the Arts and Humanities. Today, MU has expanded to 7 undergraduate faculties: Education; Sharia and Law; Arts and Humanities; Economics and Management Sciences; Computer Science and Information Technology; Nursing; and Political Science and Mass Media, as well as a number of post-graduate partnership programs in collaboration with universities in Sudan and Malaysia. To date, 6,358 students have enrolled in the university since its inception twelve years ago - a tremendous success given the country's instability. ¶4. For its first five years of operation, the university did not pursue aggressive external fundraising, with the aim of being locally driven and self-sustainable. MU raised revenue from students, NGOs in the Arab world, and donations from Somalis. Unused to paying school fees, only 20 of the first class of 215 students were able to pay their fees at the end of the year. The administration waived fees and offered six different types of scholarships to its students. Today, school fees range between $500-$800/year. Many students still receive university scholarships and others receive assistance from relatives in the diaspora. Over 70% of students work part-time, generally as primary or secondary school teachers. Children of all of MU's 250 employees are eligible for free university education, an incentive created to attract qualified candidates, as salaries remain relatively low and insecurity in the region is high. -------------- Conflict-Oriented Operating Strategies -------------- ¶5. Since its inception, MU has had to confront major security challenges. In the university's first year of operation, a group of militia took over university classrooms, claiming the land as their own. In response, the administrators decided to operate fully independently of the government and any public spaces. The university founders began renting private rooms, beginning with a temporary rental of the Sinah hotel in Yaqshid, on the former "green line" that divided the capital. Two campuses were developed - one in the Wardhigley district, and the second outside of the city, 3 km from the industrial road by Yaqshid. The Islamic Development Bank offered $400,000 in seed funding to begin the construction of university buildings. ¶6. The university continued operating throughout the war, despite escalating instability. In the late 1990s, insurgents began NAIROBI 00001601 002 OF 003 fighting around the university property, looted several buildings, and killed several security guards. To remain operational during the conflict, MU set up temporary campuses around Mogadishu, expanding areas where prominent high schools were already operating. These campuses, which continue to operate today, include areas in and around Kilometer 4, Bondhere (close to Wardhigley),Bulo-Hobey (near the airport),and most recently, in Bosasso (Puntland). ¶7. Over the past year, students have been forced to frequently move from one campus to another due to conflict. The university has relied upon a system of mobile phone communication via SMS text messages to notify students where their classes will be held. According to the Chairman, students have adapted well and "studies have been minimally disrupted." The university successfully graduated a full class of students this June. Although a Somali lecturer and a masters student were killed in 2009, neither were directly targeted. According to Professor Abdi Dahir Dirie, advisor to the university president, staff and students are not targeted by al-Shabaab or the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) because of widespread respect for the university and because "everyone's child is there, on both sides." ¶8. Beyond security concerns, MU faces funding challenges. There is a lack of resources to conduct institutional capacity-building, training, outreach, or to establish a library and provide adequate teaching materials in both English and Arabic. Chairman Abdullahi noted the lack of support from international organizations, as everyone is focused solely on emergency aid to Somalia. "No one is thinking about creating the leadership of the future," he told us. Professor Dirie said that the university faces challenges in maintaining its competitiveness and quality, especially in terms of bringing in lecturers who are willing to work in Mogadishu. -------------- Establishing an American Corner -------------- ¶9. The Somalia Unit has successfully delivered material for and established an American Corner at Mogadishu University. We are in the process of working with the university to establish what additional materials are required and how we can optimize this vital resource for both university and USG goals. The President of the University will be in Nairobi in the coming weeks and we will conduct a small ceremony at which we will sign the formal Memorandum of Understanding. In the meantime, our facilitators, including a recent International Visitor's Leadership Program alumnus, have set up the American Corner and have begun using it as a resource center for the students. -------------- MU Increases Women's Enrollment -------------- ¶10. Since its founding, there has been a concerted effort to increase women's enrollment in MU. In the 1997/1998 class, just 9% of the class was female; ten years later the rate more than tripled to 31%. Saida Mohamed Hashi, a 37 year old Mogadishu-born woman, was a member of MU's first class, graduating from the Faculty of Sharia and Law in 2001. Out of 31 students in her class, she was one of 3 women. Today, Saida is vice-chairperson for the Justice Watch Association (JUWA),a Somali human rights organization. She explained to us, "Without my education at Mogadishu University, I would not have arrived to where I am today." USAID and CARE have sponsored 20 female students in the 2008/2009 academic year as part of the first cohort of the National Campaign for Young Women Leadership Scholarships. All the women graduated with high academic performances. -------------- Plans for the Future -------------- ¶11. Mogadishu University's vision for the future includes maintaining its headquarters in Mogadishu, operating a branch in Bosasso, and opening a new campus in Baidoa. The University has secured land in Baidoa and is planning on expansion in 2011. The Chairman said that MU hopes to establish an engineering faculty, medical school, and university hospital. Classes will resume in the first week of September, and, as the Chairman noted, the university NAIROBI 00001601 003 OF 003 will continue to promote its message that "education should continue by any means." We will continue to work with the university, via the scholarship program, American Corner, and other collaborative initiatives to integrate its faculties, staff and students with peace-building and governance efforts. SLUTZ