An Examination of Conflict and Development in Global South - Essay Example

?An Examination of Conflict and Development in Global South (Case Study) Somalia Introduction Conflict is a major factor that affects the developmentof a given institution, country or state. Conflicts are associated with instability which affects the positive progress and incapacitate any development programs. Lack of stability in Somalia has pulled down the development in the country as much of the efforts and resources are used in other projects aimed at solving the conflicts and bring the country to a stable state at the expense of engaging in development projects (Vitzthum and Somali Studies International Association 2001). This piece of work paper gives an examination of conflict and development in Somali which is the case study with much insight being given to the impact of decolonization on the state, the extent of positive development, the effect of conflict on the state’s development and the position of the state in today’s international system. Other relevant issues regarding the states will also be discussed for better understanding. Aspects Regarding Somalia Somalia is a country located in the horn of Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. It is a country that is relatively small (smaller than Texas), with a population of approximately 9,133,124 people. It is arid and barren having only two rivers namely juba and Shebelle. It however have got some very essential natural resources for instance uranium, natural gas, iron ore, tin, gypsum, salt, copper, bauxite and some possible oil deposits as well as fish and marine life situated along the gulf of Aden, the Arabian sea, and the Indian ocean. The problem is that most of the natural resources are unexploited mainly due to the political instability and lack of appropriate technology for the exploitation and processing (Anonymous 2011). Somali gained independence in 1960, 1st July following a reunion between the British Somaliland and the Italian Somaliland forming the Somali republic. Somalia has had a lot of changes of the presidents and had no working government from the year 1991 to 2000 when a weak parliamentary government was created but did not last long as it run out in 2003 without any positive changes in terms of control in the country (Federal Research Division 2004). It was in 2004 that an intermediary parliament, transitional federal government (TFG) was established and a president elected, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed. It was during the national election in 2009 that a permanent government was established and Sheik Sharif Ahmed elected as the president and has ruled to present (Mansbach and Rafferty 2007). Somalia is a country that has been faced with a lot of conflicts associated with the various changes in the government and presidents leading to instability and lack of control in the country (Kisiangani 2006). The government of Somalia is a democratic republic and the state is viewed as a politically failed state by the international community due to its inability to restore the political stability in the country and its indulgence in criminal activities like piracy and bombing attacks in various parts of the world (Best 2008). Answers to the Questions Decolonization entails the process of changing from colonial status to independent status. It involves the reverse of colonization and establishment of governance hence attainment of authority where a country can now carry out its practices and activities without interference by the colonizers. It involves gaining of independence and autonomy from the colonizing country such as in the governing of it owns practices and activities for example the utilization of the natural resources. Somalia is a country that is well known for political instability for a long period of time. It was colonized by Britain, France, and Italy all with their specific interests in the country. This is a contributing factor towards its political instability as all the colonizing countries had effects on the governance hence the conflicts (Baylis, Smith and Owens 2011). Wapner (1995), argues that decolonization in Somalia was not without impacts for instance the Somali government was involved in pursuing a policy of Somali self determination which is associated with the emergence of tension and conflict with the neighbouring states as Somalia wanted to attain ownership of some regions for instance Kenya and there existed border skirmishes. The tension was further built in 1962 when Somalia collaborated with the Soviet Union for the provision of military aid so as to be able to conquer the states deemed to be enemies. There were regional and internal conflicts in the country and rivalries which led to the splitting of the political parties which in one way or the other caused the disunity of the Somali people. Although decolonization came along with a lot of hopes and promises it did not attain them as there still existed some problems though there were some improvements in infrastructure and farming and livestock production but was affected by the drought that occurred. In a nutshell decolonization has not led to greater positive impacts as expected in the country as the country has not been able to achieve stability (Griswold 2007). Little (2003) asserts that despite the fact that Somalia has been faced with a lot of problems during the colonial period and also the decolonization period, there are some positive developments that can be noted. It is however difficult to give a general analysis of the positive developments in the country as regions are divided in regard to military, economic, and even political development hence the existence of regions in crisis for instance southern and central Somalia where insecurity is great and conflicts are high leading to displacement of people hence little or no positive development, those in the recovery stage for instance northwest Somalia and northeast Somalia where there is a positive progress towards economic recovery from the crisis as the regions are safe and secure and can allow for development programs. The regions in transition on the other hand for instance parts of Gedo, middle Juba, Hiran and middle and lower Shebelle have little developments and they are characterized by clan based political activity but are relatively secure (Fitzgerald 2002). All in all there are some positive development for example in the livestock sector which is the major source of livelihood for the Somalia people hence contributing to the improvement of the living standards of the people to a certain degree. The formal lifting of the livestock ban by the government has improved the livestock status in the country by restricting the exportation of livestock which has in return led to an increase in the price of livestock. Farming in general has also improved although it is affected by the bad climatic conditions like inadequate rainfall and long periods of drought (Bruton 2010). The development of Somali has been affected negatively by the conflicts that have been in the country. Conflict is usually associated with lack of coordination and hence it does not foster development. This is because it distorts leadership and allocations of resources as the people in power are not in line with each other and can therefore not do anything in common (Ngoma 2003). The existence of conflict and tension in Somalia has also resulted in the use of the available resources in an effort to restore peace and stability leaving development projects out and hence pulling down the development of the country to a great extent. Just like development, conflict touches on aspects of economy, gender, religion, and culture among others. Development is usually a process that needs a lot of carefully planned strategies and should not be viewed as a product. The plans to development in Somali are not successful due to the disruptions brought about by the conflicts (Loolas 2009). The political instability in Somalia is also a restricting factor to indulgence of other development agents for instance from other countries as no investor would be comfortable in a place where political stability is compromised in any way, for example, it has been a challenge to operate remittance companies in the country. Development in any aspect however minor requires the presence of peace and stability so as to ensure success and prosperity which are facilitated by proper coordination among various agents of change (Barbanti 2004). According to Halden (2008), Somalia state is viewed as a failed state due to the major conflicts it experiences and the state of statelessness or powerlessness in regard to having political control and power. The tension and conflicts in the country has resulted in unacceptable behavior among the citizens of Somalia for instance terrorism where there have been lots of attacks in different parts of the world by the Somalia people (Clark and Sophia 2008). The country has not only caused chaos and havoc within its borders but also in other countries through their bombing attacks as well as its interference in international waters where they perpetrate pirate actions among those using the waterways and worse still causing deaths of numerous people through their unlawful acts. The country’s reputation has been destroyed due to the activities in which the people are involved with and people would not want to be associated with them as they are seen as threats not only to development but also to human life. This has in a way affected the country’s development negatively as various investors are afraid to venture into any productive projects in the country due to the political and social instability that exist. Somali is a country that has spent much of its year in war in an effort to retain or restore stability. There is however hopes that there may be positive change in the near future (Rhodes 1996). Conclusion From the case study, Somalia, it is evident that conflict has a lot of negative impacts on a country’s economy and it affects its development to a great extent. This is because no development project is deemed to prosper where there is political instability. We can also conclude that it is a very difficult task to restore peace and stability in a nation once it is destroyed and it is therefore necessary to always prevent any instability where possible to avoid major harm and problems associated with instability. References List Anonymous. 2011. Somalia Country Profile. 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Why Somalia has no National State. [Online] Available at: http://www.workers.org/2007/world/somalia-0111/[Accessed March 25th 2011]. Halden, P. 2008. Somalia: Failed State or Nascent States-System? [Online] Available at: http://www.foi.se/upload/projects/Africa/FOI-R--2598.pdf Kisiangani, E. 2006. Phases of Conflict in Africa. African Journal on Conflict Resolution. Vol. 6, No.2 pp. 127-130. Little, D.P. 2003. Somalia: Economy without State. Oxford, International African Institute in association with James Currey Loolas, 2009. The Somalia Conflict and its Effects in the Horn of Africa.[Online] Available at: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/2161502/posts[Accessed March 25th 2011]. Mansbach, W.R. and Rafferty, L.K. 2007. Introduction to Global Politics. London, Routledge. Ngoma, N. 2003. SADC: Towards A security community? African Security Review vol. 12 (3) Rhodes, W.A.R. 1996. The New Governance: Governing Without Government. 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