The Centre for Afghanistan, Middle East & Africa (CAMEA) at the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI), in collaboration with Pakistan Africa Institute for Development and Research (PAIDAR), organized an event to celebrate Somalia’s Independence Day.
The proceedings, which began with the national anthems of Pakistan and Somalia, were moderated by Ms. Amina Khan, Director CAMEA. Speakers included Ambassador Sohail Mahmood, Director General ISSI; Mr. Yasin Mire Mohamud, Deputy Head of Mission of Somalia to Pakistan; Mr. Shahid Ali Seehar, Ambassador of Pakistan to Djibouti (accredited to Somalia); and Ambassador Khalid Mahmood, Chairman BOG ISSI. The Chief Guest on the occasion was Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, President PAIDAR, and the Keynote Speaker was Ambassador Hamid Asghar Khan, Additional Secretary (Africa), Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed praised the “blood-cemented solidarity” between Pakistan and Somalia, recalling Pakistan’s peacekeepers martyred in Mogadishu and military aid during the 1978 Ogaden conflict as proof that “Islamabad has always stood by Mogadishu in its hour of need.”He urged the Foreign Office to reopen Pakistan’s embassy in Mogadishu and pledged to lead a think tank delegation there. With both Pakistan and Somalia on the UN Security Council, he called for deeper cooperation in security, trade, and education, noting Pakistan hosts the largest cohort of Somali students worldwide.
“Together we will build a better tomorrow,” he concluded.
Ambassador Sohail Mahmood, Director General ISSI, recalled the historic significance of July 1, 1960, when the union of British and Italian Somaliland gave birth to the Somali Republic, a landmark in Africa’s decolonisation and a symbol of the Somali people’s aspirations for freedom, dignity and sovereignty. Ambassador Sohail noted the longstanding Pakistan-Somalia ties rooted in mutual respect, shared faith, and people-to-people links, recalling that Pakistan was among the first to recognise Somalia’s independence.
