.
, but 20 years later the country still isn't recognized by anyone. Somaliland has succeeded while Somalia has struggled, yet the country is still failing to get recognition.
Somaliland lies in the Horn of Africa, on the southern coast of the
Gulf of Aden. It is bordered by
Djibouti to the northwest,
Ethiopia to the south and west, and
Somalia to the east. Its claimed territory has an area of 176,120 square kilometres (68,000 sq mi), with approximately 3.5 million residents in 2014. The capital and largest city is
Hargeisa.
In
1988, the
Siad Barre government began a crackdown against the Hargeisa-based
Somali National Movement (SNM) and other militant groups, which were among the events that led to the
Somali Civil War. The conflict left Somalia's economic and military infrastructure severely damaged. Following the collapse of Barre's government in early
1991, local authorities, led by the SNM,
unilaterally declared independence from Somalia on
18 May of the same year and reinstated the borders of the former short-lived independent
State of Somaliland.
Since 1991, the territory has been governed by
democratically elected governments that
seek international recognition as the government of the
Republic of Somaliland. The central government maintains
informal ties with some foreign governments, who have sent delegations to
Hargeisa. Ethiopia also maintains a
trade office in the region. However, Somaliland's self-proclaimed independence has
not been officially recognised by any country or international organisation. It is a member of the
Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization, an advocacy group whose members consist of indigenous peoples, minorities and unrecognised or occupied territories.
Somalia, officially the
Federal Republic of Somalia, is a
country in the
Horn of Africa. It is bordered by
Ethiopia to the west,
Djibouti to the Northwest, the
Gulf of Aden to the north, the
Indian Ocean to the east, and
Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on
Africa's mainland. Its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains, and highlands. Hot conditions prevail year-round, with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall.
Somalia has an estimated population of around 15 million and has been described as Africa's most culturally homogeneous country. Around 85% of its residents are ethnic
Somalis, who have historically inhabited the country's north. Ethnic minorities are largely concentrated in the south. The official languages of Somalia are
Somali and
Arabic. Most people in the country are
Muslims, the majority of them
Sunni.
In antiquity, Somalia was an important commercial center. It is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient
Land of Punt. During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade, including the
Ajuran Sultanate, the
Adal Sultanate, and the
Sultanate of the Geledi.
In the
late 19th century, the
Somali Sultanates were
colonized by
Italy,
Britain and
Ethiopia. European colonists merged tribal territories into two
colonies, but in
Somaliland,
Sayid Mohamed's
Dervish movement managed to frustrate the Abyssinians,
Italians and
British during expeditions against Somaliland four times, forcing them to retreat to the coast, before finally being defeated in the
1920 Somaliland Campaign. Italy acquired full control of the northeastern, central, and southern parts of the area after successfully waging the
Campaign of the Sultanates against the ruling
Majeerteen Sultanate and
Sultanate of Hobyo. In
1960, the two territories united to form the independent
Somali Republic under a civilian government.
The
Supreme Revolutionary Council seized power in
1969 and established the
Somali Democratic Republic, which collapsed 22 years later, in
1991, with the onset of the
Somali Civil War. During this period most regions returned to
customary and
religious law. In the
early 2000s, a number of interim federal administrations were created. The
Transitional National Government (TNG) was established in
2000, followed by the formation of the
Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in
2004, which reestablished the
Somali Armed Forces. In
2006, with a US backed Ethiopian intervention, the TFG assumed control of most of the nation's southern conflict zones from the newly formed
Islamic Courts Union (ICU). The ICU subsequently splintered into more radical groups, such as
Al-Shabaab, which battled the TFG and its
AMISOM allies for control of the region.
By
mid-2012, the insurgents had lost most of the territory they had seized, and a search for more permanent democratic institutions began. A new provisional
constitution was passed in
August 2012, reforming Somalia as a
federation. The same month, the
Federal Government of Somalia was formed and a period of reconstruction began in
Mogadishu. Somalia has maintained an
informal economy mainly based on
livestock,
remittances from Somalis working abroad, and
telecommunications. It is a member of the
United Nations, the
Arab League,
African Union,
Non-Aligned Movement, and the
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
