Abdiaziz Daud Ali
Tuesday, June 30, 2020
An abstract illustration of human capability is a bicycle. A bicycle itself is a resource—a mode of transportation. If the person who owns a bicycle is unable to ride it (due to a lack of balance or knowledge), the bicycle is useless to her or him as transportation and loses its functioning. If a person owns a bicycle and has the ability to ride a bicycle, they have the capability of riding to a friend’s house, a local store, or a great number of other places. This capability would presumably increase their value of life and expand their choices. A person, therefore, needs both resources and the ability to use them to pursue their capabilities. This is one example of how different resources or skills can contribute to human capability & state development.
Somalia has untapped reserves of numerous natural resources, including uranium, iron ore , tin, gypsum, bauxite, copper, salt and natural gas
An oil group listed in Sydney, Range Resources anticipates that the Puntland province in the north has the potential to produce 5 billion barrels (790×106 m3) to 10 billion barrels (1.6×109 m3) of oil. As a result of these developments, the Somalia petroleum company was created by the Federal Government.
SOMALIA COASTLINE
Coast of Somalia has different conditions throughout its length. Being second longest in Africa this coast is easternmost coast of continental Africa, north-western coast of Indian Ocean and nearest coast to Socotra island (Yemen ) Its continental shelf is spread over 32500 km2. Northern coast extends from Djibouti to east, and eastern coast extends from north-east to south-west, reaching to Kenya.
Somali waters are home to some of the richest fishing grounds in Africa, with vast potential for fisheries and coastal area development. However the sector remains under developed due to lack of skills among fishermen to go deep into sea water, lack of tools (boats and fishing gears) and lack of regulatory frameworks.
The Somali fishing industry has high potential for growth and job creation. Though it is not among the top three contributors to the country’s GDP, the Somali coast line is the longest in Africa and among the most blessed waters. The Somali fisheries resource remains largely under-exploited partly due to the absence of good infrastructure for post harvest management of catches, despite the fact that there is growing local, regional and international demand for fish which could be exploited.
AGRICULTURE
Somalia has considerable productive resources, which offer huge potential for delivering rapid economic growth, with important impacts on people’s livelihoods. These resources include approximately 8.5 million hectares of arable land, more than 50 million livestock and about 1.8 million tons of fish annually for export. But currently, only 2.3 million hectares are under rainfed agriculture plus another 630,000 hectares under irrigation.
Somalia has the potential for an increase in agricultural production and economic growth provided employing adequete skills , enabling institutional and marketing policies are laid out.
Due to inadequate skills the agribusiness sector remains largely unexplored in Somalia allowing imported foods to dominate local markets.
ENERGY SECTOR
Since the fall of Somalia’s central government in 1991, electricity service has solely been a role of the dynamic Somali private sector. The current installed generation capacity is approximately 106 megawatts (MW). While most power companies rely on diesel generators for electricity generation, interest and investment is growing in hybrid systems that draw on solar and wind energy resources.
According to a recent study by the African Development Bank, Somalia has the highest resource potential of any African nation for onshore wind power and could generate between 30,000 to 45,000 MW. Solar power could potentially generate an excess of 2,000 kWh/m2. Only an estimated 16% of the population has access to electricity. Somalia has higher tariffs compared to neighboring countries Kenya and Ethiopia.
CONCLUSION
Somalia is a country of unmatched natural resources , resilient & hardworking population, strategically located with a potential of becoming Africa’s economic hub.
To realize this the current & the future governments should focus on developing human resource through actualizing human potential. ( acquiring skills related to the resources ; Petroleum engineers , Agricultural engineers , maritime specialists ).
Abdiaziz Daud Ali
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