The Somali National Army has graduated approximately 3,000 soldiers at the Xananbuure camp in Galgadud, marking the largest number of personnel trained in the country since the central government collapsed in 1991.
The Somali National Army has graduated approximately 3,000 soldiers at the Xananbuure camp in Galgadud, marking the largest number of personnel trained in the country since the central government collapsed in 1991.
The conscripts, drawn from across Mogadishu’s federal member states, completed almost a year of lessons in basic tactics, military discipline, law, and weapons handling, according to local media.
Instructors from Ukraine, Romania, and Sudan delivered the course under a Saudi Arabia-funded initiative stemming from a February agreement to train up to 5,000 troops.
Senior federal and regional leaders attended the ceremonial pass-out parade alongside Saudi military representatives who held part of the program's oversight.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud presided over the ceremony, framing the achievement as key evidence of the nation's ongoing institutional restoration.
“These forces represent the recovery of statehood and the rebuilding of the Somali National Army,” The Eastleigh Voice quoted Mohamud as saying, emphasizing that training recruits internally demonstrates significant progress in military self-sufficiency.
The milestone comes as the East African nation prepares to assume full operational responsibility for homeland security amid the ongoing phased withdrawal of African Union peacekeepers.
However, analysts caution that long-term success will depend on resolving persistent logistical challenges, including soldier wages, retention, and frontline ammunition supply networks.
