European Union commits €165m to AU mission in Somalia

The European Union (EU) has committed €165 million in financial support to the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), in an agreement with the African Union Commission (AUC).

This funding is being provided under the Africa Peace Facility (APF) established by the European Union at the request of the AU, and covers a period of seven months from June 1 to December 31, 2015.

“The overall objective of this financial support is to enable AMISOM contribute to the stabilization of the security situation in Somalia”, Mr. Klaus Rudischhauser, the Deputy Director-General of the Directorate-General for Development and Cooperation, representing the EU, was quoted as saying, in a statement from the AU.

The statement said the funding will cover AMISOM’s budget for troop and police allowances, death and disability compensation for military and police personnel, international and local civilian staff salaries, operational costs of AMISOM, maintenance, running costs and equipment for the AMISOM Al-Jazeera training camp in Mogadishu and Quick Impact Projects (QIPs).

The agreement was said to have been signed on behalf of the AU by the Commissioner for Peace and Security, Ambassador Smail Chergui, who expressed the profound gratitude of the AU to the EU for its continued support to the AU Mission in Somalia, adding that the success of the mission largely depends on the availability of predictable and sustainable funding.

“This financial support package will enable AMISOM to continue its commendable efforts to complete the liberation and stabilization of Somalia, in line with its AU and UN mandate’’, the Commissioner was quoted as saying.

The AU noted that the agreement was the 14th of its kind to be signed between the AU and the EU.

By Emmanuel Odonkor