BBC: Somali piracy 'boosts Puntland economy'

[AfricaOwn]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16534293

 

New research suggests piracy has led to widespread economic development in some parts of Somalia.

 

The study, published by British think-tank Chatham House, looked at detailed satellite imagery.

 

Regional centres have benefited from substantial investment funded by piracy, but coastal communities have missed out, the report indicates.

 

International naval patrols in the Gulf of Aden are making it more difficult for Somali pirates to launch attacks.

 

However, at least 40 vessels and more than 400 hostages are still being held in or just off Somalia, according to the Ecoterra International group which monitors piracy in the region.

 

A two-decade civil war in Somalia has allowed pirates to flourish.

 

Some of them are former fishermen who say they were put out of business by trawlers from around the world taking advantage of the power vacuum to fish in Somali waters.

map

 

The study suggests a land-based solution is needed to tackle the problem.

 

Report author Anja Shortland used high-resolution daytime satellite images and also looked at night light emissions throughout the decade starting in 2000.

 

The night pictures show a significant increase in light emissions from centres such as Garowe and Bosasso in the semi-autonomous Puntland region where most of the pirates are based.

 

This suggests an increase in electricity consumption because of economic development, the study says.

 

The increase in the highest intensity light spots in those cities came despite a general decline in intensity across Somalia, which Ms Shortland attributes to global food and energy price rises and renewed conflict.

 

None of the pirate communities on the coast appeared to have enough power, she observed.

Shared benefits

 

Analysis of daytime satellite image showed that Garowe almost doubled in area between 2002 and 2009, with significant housing, industrial and commercial developments.

 

Many houses were newly built or repaired between those dates and a much larger number have vehicles parked outside.

 

The key pirate centres of Eyl and Hobyo, by contrast, showed evidence of only limited and relatively small improvements to their infrastructure.

graph

 

The report concludes that significant amounts of ransom money are spent in the regional centres, with the benefits being shared out between a large number of people due to the clan structures in place.

 

"Puntland's political elites are therefore unlikely to move decisively against piracy," it says.

 

In addition to satellite images, the Chatham House report analysed information collected by non-governmental organisations on commodity prices and wages.

 

Data from the Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit suggests nominal daily wages in the pirate provinces of Nugal and Muduq "have caught up with and then overtaken non-pirate regions since the explosion of piracy in 2008," the study says.

 

In Nugal province, the daily wage increased from 40,000 Somali shillings in 2005 to 120,000 in 2011 ($1 = 25,000 Somali shillings).

 

"This is likely to reflect both direct employment opportunities and investments into local businesses."

 

The report adds that the positive effect of piracy on incomes in parts of Puntland has been offset by the impact of food price inflation.

International response

 

In response to the massive increase in piracy off Somalia in 2008 and international naval force was established to patrol the seas off Somalia.

 

The Chatham House report observes that pirate attacks off Somalia have become considerably more violent since mid-2010, because of the increased difficulty of capturing ships.

 

"Pirates now invest more resources in maximising the return from each captured ship," it says.

 

The report also warns that if pirates increase their co-operation with Islamist militants from the al-Shabab group, piracy could end up funding regional instability and terror.

 

Ms Shortland argues that a land-based response is necessary to help tackle piracy.

 

"A negotiated solution to the piracy problem should aim to exploit local disappointment among coastal communities regarding the economic benefits from piracy and offer them an alternative that brings them far greater benefits than hosting pirates does," she says.

 

"A military crack-down on the other hand would deprive one of the world's poorest nations of an important source of income and aggravate poverty."

[Libaax-Sankataabte]

^

[Somalia]

@Oodweyne, do not blame the player, blame the game.

[Che -Guevara]

Kudos to the Somali coast guard:-)

[AfricaOwn]

Somalia;773676 wrote:

@Oodweyne, do not blame the player, blame the game.

The study is clearly blaming the players, Ood is hardly doing that.

[Somalia]

AfricaOwn;773682 wrote:

The study is clearly blaming the players, Ood is hardly doing that.

He says Faroole will use pirate money to fund a possible Presidential campaign in Mogadishu.

[Dr_Osman]

Thats funny piracy generates close around 150 million a year give or take and ur trying to tell me a few houses will account for that money. Lol most of that money is investing in nairobi anyone with a brain knows that

[Dr_Osman]

The pirates if they would of invested all their pirate proceeds into puntland you know what that would do to the economy? that would cause inflation to rise so high ppl wouldnt be able to live. Thats why they invest into nairobi they know it would be suicide to disturb the economy where everyone wud rise up against them literally!!!

[Dr_Osman]

I suggest to the pirates to invest into nairobi, its smart move cause thats wat i would do also!!! but wait till the oil generates and american dollars are flooding through the market. Then can the pirate re-channel those investments back into Puntland without disturbing the economy!!! Thats why only a few houses have been built wallahi their smart mofos

[Naxar Nugaaleed]

so if I got this study right, the gist of is that there has been development in a time span of a decade so it must be the pirates?

[uchi]

Some desk/office girl from London looked at some pictures of Garowe and some lights & decided it must be the pirates building with thier loot, no doubt about it lol.

 

Forget about investment from the outside community.

[Carafaat]

uchi;773788 wrote:

Some desk/office girl from London looked at some pictures of Garowe and some lights & decided it must be the pirates building with thier loot, no doubt about it lol.

 

Forget about investment from the outside community.

wages and salaries dont triple in a matter of 5 years. for that you need a turpo boost of foreign money. unless the diaspora of Garowe is 3X more wealthier then all the other diaspora's, I would say there other sources of foreign currency influx. you dont need to guess what it possible could be.

[Samafal]

There are too many inconsistencies in this report and guess work. For example, Galkio is more closer to the former pirate bases of Garad and Eyl than Garowe and Bosaso, why then it has not benefited from the Pirate spoils?

 

Also, What about the pirates of Hobyo and Xarardhere, where do they invest their pirate pay outs, certainly not in Garowe and in Bosaso. Where then? It could have been fair if she explained that as well. As for sure, due to clan allegiance, they would not invest in Puntland.

 

The fallacy of her urgument is also apparent in ignoring the fast development that have Bosaso and Garowe gone through pre piracy era. For example Garowe before 1998 was merely a village, but due to vast investment by its people it has became a city in few years without any piracy existing.

[Jacaylbaro]

 

[Xaaji Xunjuf]

Maxay xaaraan ka dhergeen