Turkey's engagement in peace building in Somalia: challenges and opportunities

Abstract

The study sought to examine Turkey's engagement in peace-building in Somalia: challenges and opportunities. The study’s objectives were; to establish the Turkish efforts towards establishing sustainable peace in Somalia; to assess the opportunities available for Turkish in establishing peace in Somalia; and, to establish challenges faced by Turkey in establishing sustainable peace in Somalia. This study used cross-sectional research design to assess the respondents’ views towards Turkey's engagement in peace-building in Somalia: challenges and opportunities. Cross-sectional research design looks at a variable at a particular point in time and focuses on the relationship between variables. The study targeted 110 respondents who were involved in establishing sustainable peace in Somalia and these included; 20 Turkish NGO officials, 8 Turkish Government representatives, 30 Locals, 25 Elders and 27 Somali Government officials. Out of 110 respondents, the researcher used a sample size of 104 respondents. The researcher used Sloven’s formula to determine a sample size of 104 respondents. The researcher also used census in sampling the Turkish Government representatives. A census is the complete enumeration of a population or groups at a point in time with respect to well defined characteristics. The sample was purposively and randomly selected. Turkish NGO officials and Somali Government officials were purposely selected because they were believed to be well versed with Turkey's engagement in peace-building in Somalia. All respondents were assumed to have vital information on the subject matter of the research. The researcher used Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) to analyze the relationship between the variables under study. The study revealed that 70(81.4%) of the respondents agreed that Turkey’s effort in establishing a Sustainable Peace in Somalia was feasible. The remaining 16(18.6%) of the respondents disagreed. This implies that most of the respondents involved in this study were informed about the role played by Turkey in establishing a Sustainable Peace in Somalia. The study concludes that Turkish NGOs’ in some cases require the permission of local authorities to access to Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) some of whom were understood to have important clan ties with aid workers. While Turkish NGOs claim that they did not directly pay for access, they in some cases employed individuals recommended by local authorities in order to develop relations. The study recommends that after two decades of conflict and state failure, the international community must consider, and rethink past strategies and policies employed toward stabilizing Somalia.