Last Updated on March 5, 2026 10:57 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
AMN/ WEB DESK
Somalia’s Parliament has voted to amend the constitution, extending the terms of both lawmakers and the President, delaying scheduled elections by one year. The country has faced decades of instability and clan-based conflict since the 1991 collapse of the regime of former autocratic ruler Mohamed Siad Barre.
Although a peacekeeping mission by the African Union has helped push back the Al-Qaeda-linked militant group Al-Shabaab, the group still controls large rural areas and continues to carry out attacks on major population centres. The recent amendment increases the terms of lawmakers and the President to five years, from four years.
Earlier, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud reached an agreement last August with some opposition leaders stating that lawmakers would be directly elected starting in 2026, while the President would still be chosen by Parliament. Meanwhile, opposition party leaders, including former Presidents and former Prime Ministers, rejected the amendment and called for elections in May this year.