The only Somali "City" I've been to is JigJiga. It is still relatively small, not as big as Mogadishu or hargeisa. The town is being promoted as the regions capital so there is some investment on roads etc. When compared to other Ethiopian cities it's way of the pace, more like a small dusty town lol. The Main thing it has going for it is planning,there seems to be some order to the buildings, specially the new builds. The streets seem to be clean enough, although when you leave the main roads you do come across plenty of crap.Electricity has a tendency to drop. There is the ever present police force who will search you at any given opportunity, this is a major put off. On the upside the City is in a great location,good links with neighboring Somali Cities, decent weather and plenty of future potential.
I have heard a lot of good things from hargeisa to be honest, seems Very vibrant. The city is at the forefront of everything Somali, it's a very important city for all Somalis, unfortunately for me I did't have enough time to cross the border. next trip inshallah.
I plan on going to Somalia starting with Hargeisa, then Bosaso down to Mogadishu finishing my tour back up to the town of my birth qabri dahere in the Somali region of Ethiopia.
