STORY: AMISOM hands over top military academy to

Somali government

DURATION: 5:42

SOURCE: AMISOM PUBLIC INFORMATION

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LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/SOMALI NATURAL SOUND

DATELINE: 28/FEBRUARY/2019, MOGADISHU, SOMALIA

SHOT LIST:

1. Wide shot, soldiers loading their belongings on a truck

2. Close up shot, soldiers loading their belongings on a truck

3. Med shot, soldiers loading their belongings on a truck

4. Wide shot, AU troops from Burundi waiting to leave the Jaalle Siyaad Military
Academy

5. Close up shot, a soldier on top of a military vehicle

6. Wide shot, military vehicles

7. Med shot, military vehicles

8. Close up shot, soldiers

9. Wide shot, military vehicles ready to depart

10. Close up shot, a soldier walking

11. Med shot, soldiers walking

12. Med shot, soldiers on parade

13. Med shot, Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi
Mohamed Guled, is received by the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the
African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Francisco Madeira

14. Med shot, soldiers on parade

15. Wide shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira touring the Jaalle Siyaad Military Academy

16. Wide shot, a building

17. Med shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira touring the academy

18. Wide shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira inspecting a water treatment plant

19. Med shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira

20. Wide shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira touring the academy

21. Med shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira at the generator plant

22. Wide shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira leaving the generator plant

23. Med shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira entering one of the buildings to preside over the
handing over ceremony

24. Med shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira cutting a tape

25. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ambassador Francisco Madeira, Special Representative

of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission for Somalia

“Today’s handover is another major milestone in the implementation of the

transition plan, and it follows last August’s transfer of security responsibilities of the
Mogadishu Stadium to the Somali authorities. But above all, it is also a clear
testament to the combined commitment of AMISOM and the Federal Government
of Somalia in fulfilling key requirements under the UN Security Council Resolution
2431, as AMISOM continues to plan its drawdown and final exit from Somalia.”
26. Close up shot, Lt. Gen. Tigabu Yilma, AMISOM Force Commander and FGS State
Minister for Defence, Mohamed Ali Haga at the ceremony

27. Close up shot, Lt. Gen. James Lakara, AMISOM Deputy Force Commander in
charge of Operations and Plans at the ceremony

28. Close up shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled

29. Wide shot, Somali National Forces senior officers at the ceremony

30. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ambassador Francisco Madeira, Special Representative

of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission for Somalia

“It was from this same base that AMISOM troops with the support of Somali forces
gallantly liberated another national institution, Gashandiigah, which in turn led to
the securing of one of Mogadishu’s iconic Markets, Bakara market, which
consequently contributed to Al-Shabaab’s defeat and withdrawal from Mogadishu.”

31. Med shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira signing handover documents

32. Wide shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira after signing the handover documents

33. SOUNDBITE: (Somali) Mahdi Mohamed Guled, Deputy Prime Minister of

Somalia

“The handover of Jaalle Siyaad is testimony to (the commitment by the federal

government and its partners) to the implementation of the National Security Plan,
which is one of the top priorities among government programs.”

34. Med shot, a senior Somali National Army officer signing assets transfer
documents together with an official from UNSOS (United Nations Support Office in
Somalia)

35. Close up shot, a senior Somali National Army officer signing

36. Wide shot, shaking hands after signing

37. SOUNDBITE: (Somali) Mohamed Ali Haga, Minister of Defence of the Federal
Government of Somalia

“I want to thank AMISOM in general and particularly Burundi troops who have
secured this area and maintained it to state they can hand it over today.”
38. SOUNDBITE: (English) Marco Carmignani, Director of Rule of Law and Security
Institutions Group (ROLSIG) of the United Nations Support Office in Somalia

“The handing over of the second high profile location in Mogadishu bodes well for
the continued implementation of the transition plan throughout 2019 and beyond.
Allow me to reiterate the commitment of the UNSOM (United Nations Support
Office in Somalia) to support the FGS (Federal Government of Somalia) and AMISOM
during the next phases of the transition process.”

39. Pan shot, Somali National Army officers singing

40. Med shot, FGS Deputy Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled and SRCC
Ambassador Francisco Madeira

41. Wide shot, Somali National Army officers dancing

AMISOM hands over top military academy to Somali government

Mogadishu, 1 March 2019 - The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM)

yesterday handed over to the Federal Government of Somalia a military training
academy it has occupied for more than a decade.

The Jaalle Siyaad Military Academy, which had been an operation base for the
Burundi contingent, since September 2008, was handed over to Somalia’s Deputy
Prime Minister, Mahdi Mohamed Guled, by the Special Representative of the
Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador
Francisco Madeira, at a colourful ceremony held in the Somali capital.

“The handover is another major milestone in the implementation of the Somalia

Transition Plan, and it follows last August’s handover of the Mogadishu National
Stadium to the Federal Government of Somalia,” Ambassador Francisco Madeira
stated.

The Academy holds a special place in the country’s history, having served as a key
Forward Operation Base (FBO) for AU troops during the fierce battle against Al-
Shabaab militants that led to the liberation of Mogadishu in 2011.

The hand over, the SRCC noted, signifies the commitment of AMISOM and the
Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) in fulfilling key requirements under the United
Nations Security Council Resolution 2431, which authorized withdrawal of AMISOM
troops and gradual transfer of security responsibility to the Somali National Security
Forces.
 Ambassador Madeira recollected how the once prestigious military academy fell in
the hands of Al-Shabaab, at the height of the civil war.

“It was from this same base that AMISOM troops with the support of Somali forces
gallantly liberated another national institution, Gashandiigah, which in turn led to
the securing of one of Mogadishu’s iconic market, Bakara market, consequently
contributing to Al-Shabaab’s defeat and withdrawal from Mogadishu,” Ambassador
Madeira said.

The event was attended by senior officials from AMISOM, United Nations and the
federal government, among them, State Minister of Defence, Mohamed Ali Haga;
Mayor of Mogadishu, Abdirahman Omar Osman; Deputy Chief of Defence Forces of
the Somali National Army (SNA), Gen. Bile Mohamud Adan; AMISOM Force
Commander, Lt. Gen. Tigabu Yilma Wondimhunegn, and Burundi Contingent
Commander, Brig. Leonidas Niyungeko. Representatives from the European Union,
Italy and Turkey also attended the ceremony.

The handover was the culmination of three months of preparation, which saw the
Burundi continent move its main operation base to Jowhar, the administrative
capital of Somalia’s youngest state, HirShabelle.

The Deputy Prime Minister described the handover of the academy as proof that the
country was on the right path to achieving long lasting peace and security after
decades of war.

“The handover of Jaalle Siyaad is testimony to the commitment by the government

and its partners to the implementation of the National Security Plan, which is one of
the top priorities on the list of government programmes,” he observed.

Paying tribute to the sacrifices made by AMISOM soldiers in stabilizing the country,
Mr. Guled urged residents to work closely with the government in its efforts to
secure the country and promote the rule of law.

Mr. Marco Carmignani, the Director of Rule of Law and Security Institutions Group
(ROLSIG) of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) thanked
AMISOM for its contributions and pledged the United Nation’s continued support to
the stabilization process.

“Allow me to reiterate the commitment of UNSOM and UNSOS [United Nations

Support Office in Somalia] to support the FGS [Federal Government of Somalia] and
AMISOM during the next phases of the transition process,” Mr. Carmignani, who
spoke on behalf of the UN Mission in Somalia.
Minister Haga, who also spoke at the ceremony, thanked the Burundi contingent for
securing and maintaining the facility, which he noted used to be one of the
continent’s top military academies before the civil war.

Speaking on behalf of the Burundi contingent, Brig. Niyungeko urged the federal
government to use the academy and the Somali National University, which was
handed over in July 2017, to train future civil and military officers.

A number of assets put up by AMISOM for use by Burundi forces, including

accommodation facilities and generators were donated to the federal government.

The academy is the third facility to be handed over to the federal government, after
the Somali National University in July 2017 and Mogadishu National Stadium in
August 2018.