African Union mission in Somalia (2007-2022): An assessment of challenges

The conflict in Somalia lasted over three decades and the country is not stable yet. Power competition, clan dynamics, and terrorism are the most notable issues in Somalia's conflict. Several stabilization attempts such as UN intervention were established to tackle the conflict and among these efforts was the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) which was founded in 2007. This study aimed to conduct an assessment of challenges in AMISOM (2007-2022) in the research question of what are the challenges AMISOM faced between 2007 and 2022. The current literature presents that AMISOM protected the Federal government, uprooted Al-Shabaab from Mogadishu, and provided a safe package for humanitarian delivery. The study also found that AMISOM faced numerous challenges such as the mission started during an active war, environmental and logistical problems, and financial issues. The absence of a local partner and conflicting interests from troop-contributing countries, disunified command posts and sector divisions affected the progress of the mission. There was a broken relationship with the Somali National Army (SNA) and the vulnerabilities of the mission's Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) enabled terrorists to carry out attacks on the bases.