Papers by Ahmed M . Musa
Pre-war livestock trading: complementarity, constraints and criticism
Journal article , 2020
This article considers the relationship between livestock taxation and local state formation dyna... more This article considers the relationship between livestock taxation and local state formation dynamics in the northern Somali territories. While the economic importance of livestock in Somalia is undisputed, its significance as a source of revenue and legitimacy for public administrations and competing statebuilding projects has been overlooked. Drawing on fieldwork in Somaliland's main livestock markets and the Berbera corridor, we highlight the interplay between public administrations that seek to maximize livestock revenue and traders who attempt to minimize taxation. State attempts to capture these 'revenues on the hoof' by both coercive and consensual means, shifting livestock trading routes and fluctuating animal trading volumes produce different taxation patterns across the Somali territories. As a result, fiscal contracts between livestock traders and public administrations are marked by various degrees of reciprocity and coercion.
Based on postcards and Instagram posts, Raphael Schwere and Ahmed M. Musa analyse the role of cam... more Based on postcards and Instagram posts, Raphael Schwere and Ahmed M. Musa analyse the role of camels in the colonial and contemporary imaginary of Somaliland. The paper deals with pastoralism and colonial conquest as well as with cultural heritage and processus of identity construction.
Pastoralism, 2020
Livestock export from Somaliland to the Arabian Peninsula countries is an important economic acti... more Livestock export from Somaliland to the Arabian Peninsula countries is an important economic activity and the main source of Somaliland’s foreign exchange earnings. We have employed multiple regression time series analysis of secondary data to understand factors that influence the monthly volumes of small ruminants (sheep and goats) and cattle traded for export in three terminal markets in Somaliland. Results show that the Hajj season, number of livestock exporters active in the markets, market location and livestock ban imposed by the import countries are the main factors that influence the monthly volume of livestock transacted for export. Further, the results indicate that though drought does not influence the volume of small ruminants, it has an influence on the volume of cattle, while the implementation of quarantine stations has a significant influence on the volumes of livestock exports. Finally, border restrictions imposed by Ethiopia do not influence the volume of livestock...
Factors influencing livestock export in Somaliland’s terminal markets, 2020
Livestock export from Somaliland to the Arabian Peninsula countries is an important economic acti... more Livestock export from Somaliland to the Arabian Peninsula countries is an important economic activity and the main source of Somaliland's foreign exchange earnings. We have employed multiple regression time series analysis of secondary data to understand factors that influence the monthly volumes of small ruminants (sheep and goats) and cattle traded for export in three terminal markets in Somaliland. Results show that the Hajj season, number of livestock exporters active in the markets, market location and livestock ban imposed by the import countries are the main factors that influence the monthly volume of livestock transacted for export. Further, the results indicate that though drought does not influence the volume of small ruminants, it has an influence on the volume of cattle, while the implementation of quarantine stations has a significant influence on the volumes of livestock exports. Finally, border restrictions imposed by Ethiopia do not influence the volume of livestock transacted for export in the study markets. Most of the factors analysed to have influence on monthly volume livestock transacted for export are institutional and policy-related hence can be corrected though requisite regulatory, institutional and policy reforms in consultations with stakeholders.
Working Paper, 2019
From the 1980s on Somalia was in the grip of a looming civil war and formal institutions were wea... more From the 1980s on Somalia was in the grip of a looming civil war and formal institutions were weak and corrupt, which affected livestock exports. Livestock exports from northern Somalia, now Somaliland, resumed in the early 1990s in the absence of formal institutions and by late 1990, they were back in full swing. Some have made assumptions about the performance of informal institutions in the economy by interpreting the increase in the number of livestock exports from the port of Berbera in the absence of formal institutions to be an indicator of a performing post-war export sector. This study employs an institutional approach, informed by in-depth interviews and personal histories across a wide array of actors in the livestock export trade. Informal institutions have provided governance in the livestock export trade in the absence of formal institutions. However, coordination problems and other crippling challenges that have confronted livestock export since 1991 attest to the fact that informal institutions cannot be a substitute for formal institutions in the complex international trade. Somaliland had reinstated some formal institutions by the mid-1990s. However, the role of these institutions in the international livestock export trade is very limited due to their political status. Meanwhile, in the domestic economy, the interaction between formal and informal institutions has restructured the post-1991 livestock export trade.
Article, 2018
Price negotiations in the livestock marketplaces in Somaliland are not carried out openly. An exc... more Price negotiations in the livestock marketplaces in Somaliland are not carried out openly. An exclusive circle of initiated and highly skilled market insiders, the brokers, representing sellers and buyers, use a tactile sign language to bargain. And, additionally, these negotiators
cover their signing hands with a shawl (cumaamad in Somali) in order to hide the haggling from the curious glances of the bystanders. The brokers, however, only strictly censor price figures, while they orally and loudly substantiate their tactile signed offers by pinpointing the
qualities of the animal or herd under consideration. This tactile hidden negotiation in the Somali livestock trade was mentioned in a poem by Ismaaciil Mire, a well-known Somali poet who lived in Togdheer region somewhere between the late 19th and mid 20th century. Ismaaciil, criticized the practice and the dealings and norms in the marketplace generally. He believed the livestock broker who sold his livestock cheated him. Interestingly, until today criticism did not fall silent. And, the contestation of the practice is not directed to this particular way of negotiating exclusively. Some behaviours in Somaliland’s livestock markets (seylado) are perceived as anti-norm. Also, newcomers are excluded from the activities and are left in limbo and darkness concerning the procedures in the trade.
Articel, 2019
Unrecognised internationally, Somaliland operates as a hybrid political order where a range of st... more Unrecognised internationally, Somaliland operates as a hybrid political order where a range of state and non-state entities provide security, representation and social services. Local business elites have impacted state formation after war by lobbying against a range of regulations, providing the government with loans and contributions rather than paying sufficient taxes, and by hindering the development of sound financial institutions. The success of such activities has led to de facto protectionism, where foreign ventures have had limited access to the Somaliland market. While such protectionism may have negatively impacted economic development and growth opportunities, recent engagements by multinational corporations in the Berbera port suggest that foreign private investments risk sparking violent conflict. In contrast, domestic businessmen have played a role in preventing or resolving violent conflict at crucial stages in Somaliland’s recent history. Based on fieldwork in Somaliland, we argue that the impact of international corporate actors in post-war contexts needs to be understood in light of local culture and power dynamics, in which the political and economic roles of local business elites are central.
Book Reviews by Ahmed M . Musa
Book Review , 2016
Somaliland’s Private Sector at a Crossroads: Political Economy and Policy Choices for Prosperity ... more Somaliland’s Private Sector at a Crossroads: Political Economy and Policy Choices for Prosperity and Job Creation (2016) is the World Bank’s first comprehensive analysis of the private sector in Somaliland. The 90 page report takes stock of the evolution of the private sector over the past two decades, it identifies priority policy options as well as the necessary reforms that would enable the private sector to take advantage of opportunities. The report draws on a political economy lens to study how dynamics of power, interests and relationships between key (economic, social and state) actors and sociocultural contexts interplay and influence public policy and private sector activites. The report focuses on three sectors: enterprise, finance and government with a bundle of policy recommendations proposed for each. Overall the report emphasizes the need to formalize the private sector and build the capacity of civil servants to lead this formalization process. Doing so would, according to the World Bank, enable Somaliland’s economy to take advantage of opportunities, promote a climate that favours investments as well as job creation. In my attempt to review this report, I take the position of someone who has lived and worked in Somaliland for the past five years. I summarize the report’s main findings and explain how they resonate with my previous research experience on economic actors and dynamics in Somaliland.
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Papers by Ahmed M . Musa
cover their signing hands with a shawl (cumaamad in Somali) in order to hide the haggling from the curious glances of the bystanders. The brokers, however, only strictly censor price figures, while they orally and loudly substantiate their tactile signed offers by pinpointing the
qualities of the animal or herd under consideration. This tactile hidden negotiation in the Somali livestock trade was mentioned in a poem by Ismaaciil Mire, a well-known Somali poet who lived in Togdheer region somewhere between the late 19th and mid 20th century. Ismaaciil, criticized the practice and the dealings and norms in the marketplace generally. He believed the livestock broker who sold his livestock cheated him. Interestingly, until today criticism did not fall silent. And, the contestation of the practice is not directed to this particular way of negotiating exclusively. Some behaviours in Somaliland’s livestock markets (seylado) are perceived as anti-norm. Also, newcomers are excluded from the activities and are left in limbo and darkness concerning the procedures in the trade.
Book Reviews by Ahmed M . Musa