Country Profile

1. Key Facts
2. History
3. Society and Culture
4. Religion
5. Ways You Can Help

Somalia is currently 12th on Open Doors' 2008 World Watch List, which ranks countries where presecution of Christians is sanctioned or at least tolerated.  Due to the high risk both to missionaries and converts, Open Doors has been cautious in talking about Somalia.  It is time to break the silence - Somalia desperately needs change.

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• Total population (2007): 9.1 million
• Internally displaced people: 1 million (UNHCR, November 2007)
• People in need of emergency health care: 2 million (WHO 2006)
• People in need of food aid: 1.7 million (WFP 2006)
• Doctors per 100,000 people: 4 (UNDP 2006)
• Population with access to safe water (2004): 29 percent (UNDP 2006)
• Population at risk of malaria: 87 percent (UNICEF)
• Under-five mortality rate (2004): 225 per 1,000 live births (UNDP 2006)
• Children attending primary school: Boys - 13 percent; Girls - 7 percent (UNICEF)
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History
Since its formation in 1960, Somalia has seen little more than war and anarchy. From 1963-1964 the young country was at war with Ethiopia and throughout the 1990’s it was engaged in a bloody civil war.  The attempt by the US in 1991 to bring stability ended unsuccessfully.

Though the current transitional government was set up in 2004, Somalia continues to be ruled by warlords. Having ousted Islamists from the capital Mogadishu, the frail interim government, backed by Ethiopian troops, continues to struggle against an Iraqi-style insurgency.  It is estimated that between February and November 2007, more than 600,000 left the capital in addition to the hundreds of people killed there.

On October 29, 2007 President Abdullahi Yusuf won a longstanding feud with former Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi, effectively forcing the latter to step down.  President Yusuf then nominated Nur Hassan Hussein as prime minister. This marks the country's 14th attempt since 1991 at establishing an effective national authority in Somalia.
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Society & Culture
Somali society and culture has been shaped over the years by the conditions of the environment. Rounding the Horn of Africa, Somalia is covered by primarily semi-arid land and is divided by two rivers which dry up for part of the year. This has caused Somalis to be largely nomadic pastoralists who depend for their survival on drought resistant livestock such as camels and goats.  In addition to livestock, one needs the manpower to defend grazing and watering rights. Weaker clans are apt to form alliances with one another, despite the disadvantage of having to share resources without the guarantee of equal exchange. Often alliances are broken when one clan becomes powerful enough to be self-sustaining.

This ongoing process of fusion and fission - of making semi-permanent relationships for advantage - has been a major factor in shaping Somali society and culture, extending from the politics in the country to the relationship between husband and wife. This social dynamic, coupled with the rigors of nomadic life, the desire to have many sons, and polygamy, has resulted in a high divorce rate. 

Somali people, however, have a fierce loyalty to the group with whom they are aligned and are then quite generous in sharing their resources.
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Religion 
Somalia consists of 99.96% Muslims - most of them Sunni Muslims. Consequently Islam shapes most aspects of the Somali culture. Islamic fundamentalists and jihad groups linked to Al-Qaeda have flourished.

The Gospel has made extremely slow inroads. Over the years missionaries have been murdered, expelled, exploited and discouraged.  The church has seen very little success in Somalia. Those who come to Christ do so in secret. When a Somali makes a commitment to be a follower of Christ, it is with the knowledge that their life is now at risk. Many young converts to Christianity have lost their lives shortly after coming to their new faith.
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Additional info on Somalia - Country Profile
BBC Video - A Rare Venture into Somalia

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