Why women are the key to security in Somalia.

For most of the world when the word “Somalia” is combined with the word “woman” the word “victim” tends to come to mind. However, when I moved to Somalia over a decade ago the first thing that I came to realize was that women in Somalia are everything but victims. The source of the misconception is found in the narrative framework used when analyzing Somali society. While our politics remain predominately patriarchal, our economy is almost completely matriarchal. The civil war and the perpetual state of conflict the country has been in for the past three decades has significantly altered society and family dynamics. As many men died in conflicts, the economic activities that were previously occupied by men have been taken over by the women. Sectors such as livestock, agriculture and retail – which make majority of our economy – are now more female than male run industries.   However, as Somalia remains a classic text book example of a war economy where armed groups engage in both legal and illegal activities to secure business ventures and profit, the informal – and predominantly matriarchal – economy is either overlooked or under-analysed by political thinkers, economists and security analysts alike.

Al Shabaab remains a central player in Somalia’s war economy and is probably its greatest benefactor. The terror group has engaged in a war with the Federal Government of Somalia for close to two decades; such a war requires heaving funding and the group has managed to sustain funding through extortion of businesses and clans and by engaging in illicit economic activities such as money laundering, illegal trades of charcoal, sugar, arms and drugs. Although the group prides itself officially as a patriarchal organisation with little to no room for women, indirectly and unofficially the group is heavily dependent upon the informal economy. As a matter of fact, one can go as far as to say the backbone of Al Shabaab’s financial power are the business women.  

Al Shabaab’s engagement with critical elements and activities have shifted in recent years. During its inception years the group portrayed a picture of crusades against oppression and providers of justice and placed much energy in the setting up of local “shariah” courts in areas under their control. However, in recent years as the group’s mother organisation Al-Qa’eda suffered financially, amongst other things, Al-Shabaab got increasingly involved in criminal activities to finance their operations. These endeavours started with extortion and blackmailing of both businesses and individuals with punishment of death for those who refuse to comply. Although the group ventured out to illegal exporting of sugar, charcoal, drugs and arms, extortion and taxation on food and livestock remains their main sources of income. Over the years, Al-Shabaab, both as an organisation as well as individual members have financed and even run businesses across the country. Women play an instrumental role in running of the enterprises owned and/or run by the group. When recruiting women for this type of work, the group utilises different methods ranging from approaching them directly, getting a relative or a female member of Shabab or one of the wives of the leaders of the group to approach the identified women.

Joining into a business venture with Al-Shabaab has its own advantages for women who reside in Shabaab controlled territories. Firstly, these women enjoy greater freedom of movement than others, make useful personal connections and even allowed access to smart phones. The wives of prominent Al-Shabaab leaders and members are particularly encouraged in running businesses funded by the group. Apart from the confidence the group has in these women, one of the key reasons for using women in general has more to do with logistics than economic prowess. Women can quite easily cross through and between Shabab and government held territories as they are usually not suspected of being involved in the group and are checked less often by security officials.

The women also play a key role in the group’s taxation system, both as tax collectors as well as tax payers. Despite an official ban on women working, the group tax those few women that are allowed to work and run business in the same way they tax male merchants. Wives of prominent Shabaab members also accompany the groups’ various tax collector teams. For those women who are too poor to pay the tax levied, they are forced to hand over their able-bodied sons to the group to partake in their operations.

One other key role that women play for Al-Shabaab is fundraising; women have proven to be very effective fundraising agents for the group. As women have played this type of role in Somali society in general, whether it be for victims of drought, for religious institutions or for political candidates during elections, it is not a major surprise that Al-Shabab will take advantage and utilise the women in their group and the areas they control in fundraising initiatives.       

Perhaps one of the stronger ways in which women are utilised by the group is in the conduct of money laundering. The financial controls implemented in recent years both by the Federal Government of Somalia as well as international monetary institutions has made it very difficult for the group to utilise banks and remittances agencies to transfer finances. To overcome this, the group has made use of women to transfer funds for them. Just as women are not checked as closely as men at roadblocks, women are also not subject to the same financial checks. One way the group transfers funds is by buying goods at one location and sell at another in order to get cash there. Women are used for the transporting, buying and selling of goods. Female traders are drawn into to this type of work either by coercion while others are engaged because the group offers a share of the profits.

Al-Shabaab’s use of business women is revealing to the group’s relationship between ideology and strategy. Although officially banning women from working, the group has broken with this ideological belief as they realised much can be gained from employing women in business and trade ventures. Women’s economic role in the group also provide an insight into the workings of the group’s war economy; it demonstrates how not everyone who works to advance the group’s interests necessarily supports the group ideologically or see themselves as belonging to them. Indeed, as the war economy becomes their greatest asset, one could almost believe the group has shifted from being sons of bin Laden to disciples of El Chapo. Therefore, efforts to undermine Al-Shabaab’s earnings and finances will be futile if strategists do not acknowledge the gendered aspects of the group’s war economy.    

In this fight against Al-Shabaab’s war economy, the Federal Government of Somalia and its international partners has access to a potentially powerful strategy; to capitalise on and further encourage the increasing women joining the security forces. When I joined the Somali Police Force almost a decade ago, not only was I viewed as ‘out of my mind” by my friends and family, I was treated with suspicion from my colleagues for they could not understand why a young female professional raised in the West would want to take up one of the most dangerous works. Thankfully, much has changed since then and today becoming a police officer or joining the military is not only seen as normal but strongly becoming the preferred career options for many young females in Somalia. Women have served in the Somali security forces since independence and historically, Somalia has been a pioneer in the promotion of females in the security sector having produced the first female pilot in Africa as early as 1976 and had the highest number of high-ranking female officers working in various roles within the forces. The young generations of today are quite keen on continuing this history.  Since my appointment as Deputy Police Commissioner, I have been overwhelmed with requests from young female professionals – both local and diaspora – to join the Somali Police Force. To further this trend, I exerted much effort in female promotion and recruitment within the police force and managed to establish the country’s first all-female special forces unit. Same trend has also been seen within the Somali National Army which has – for the first time since the civil war – kicked off a female only recruitment drive. This trend needs to be capitalised on and further encouraged by the Somali government and its partner – not only as a commitment to international charters promoting women in security but also as a key strategy in the war on terrorism in Somalia.  

Al-Shabaab has managed to keep its insurgency going for years relying heavily on their war economy, which in turn is heavily dependent on female trades and entrepreneurs. If we fail to understand the evolving nature of terrorism in our country, we will do so at our own perish. As Al-Shabaab takes on the shape of an organised criminal entity and moves away from the puritanical and diabolical nature it was originally established on we will do well as law enforcement leaders and security analysts alike to look at Al-Shabaab as more of disciples of the likes of El Chapo than sons of Bin Laden. 

And if women are the backbone of sustained terrorism in Somalia, then it naturally should follow for our security strategies, polices and institutions to be women focused.

Perhaps even women-led…