Interview on the Horn of Africa

 Saxafi Media posted on 23 August 2026 an interview with me titled "Inside Washington's Somaliland Dilemma: David Shinn Reveals What U.S. Policy Really Means."

Although much of the interview deals with Somaliland, it covers issues throughout the Horn of Africa and beyond, including US support for Somalia sovereignty, Israel's recognition of Somaliland, importance of Ethiopia, the conflict in Sudan. Egypt's role in the region, security in the Red Sea, competition with China, the role of African diasporas, and the contribution of UN agencies and IGAD.

Somali Government Officials: Isolated with Dual Citizenship and Foreign Passports

 African Arguments published on 11 August 2026 a commentary titled "Somalia: A Government with One Foot Out the Door" by Ismail Abukar, a human rights advocate based in Mogadishu.  

A significant percentage of Somali officials are effectively ghost workers who do not come to their offices.  Many have foreign passports and dual citizenship.  At the same time, remittances from the diaspora have kept Somalia solvent.  

Somali Diaspora in Africa and Giving Back to Somalia

 The August 2026 issue of Africa Spectrum includes an "Introduction to the Special Issue: Giving in Somali Diaspora Humanitarianism in Africa" by Nauja Kleist and Mark Bardbury.

The articles in this special issue of Africa Spectrum demonstrate that Somali diaspora humanitarian engagement is continuously evolving and comes in many forms.  It is influenced by gender, generation, educational background, and socio-economic circumstances.  

The issue is unique in that it focuses on the Somali diaspora in a number of African countries and not the diaspora in North America or Europe.  

Chinese Buying Luxury Houses in Zimbabwe

 Bloomberg published on 3 April 2026 an article titled "For China's Rich, The New Must Have Is a Luxury Home in Zimbabwe."

Chinese companies have been drawn to Zimbabwe for its mineral wealth.  Increasingly, wealthy Chinese immigrants are paying cash for luxury homes in the capital of Harare, driving up housing prices in the process.  

Ethiopia Loses Temporary Protected Status in US

 The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published on 12 December 2025 an announcement titled "DHS Announces the Termination of Temporary Protected Status for Ethiopia."

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security concluded that conditions in Ethiopia no longer pose a serious threat to the personal safety of Ethiopian nationals.  Consequently, Secretary Kristi Noem terminated the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation of Ethiopia.  Ethiopian nationals with no other lawful basis for remaining in the United States have 60 days to voluntarily self deport.

VisaHQ.com posted on 13 December 2025 an announcement titled "U.S. Terminates Temporary Protected Status for Ethiopians, Affecting 30,700 Residents."

Comment:  This is part of the Trump administration's policy to remove from the country as many non-Americans as possible.  Reporting on the number of Ethiopians affected varies.  Some accounts place the number holding TPS as low as 5,000.

Trump Now Turns Against Somalis in Minnesota

 The Washington Post published on 22 November 2025 an article titled "Trump Says He Will Cancel Temporary Protected Status of Somalis in Minnesota" by Frances Vinall.  

In a post on Truth Social, President Trump said, without evidence and without providing further explanation, that "Somali gangs are terrorizing the people of that great State, and BILLIONS of dollars are missing."  As a result, he was terminating effective immediately temporary protected status (TPS) for Somali immigrants living in Minnesota.  

The Minnesota Attorney General pointed out that you cannot terminate TPS for just one state.  There are more than 75,000 persons with Somali heritage living in Minnesota.  Few of them reside there with TPS; the vast majority are US citizens.  According to the Library of Congress, nationwide there were only 705 Somalis with TPS as of August.  

Thriving Chinatown in Bamako, Mali

 The Washington Post published on 20 November 2025 an article titled "Inside a Thriving Chinatown Neighborhood in the Heart of West Africa" by Rachel Chason.  

This is the story of transforming a section of Bamako, Mali into a Chinese neighborhood and the hopes and fears of the Chinese migrants.  

Starvation Taking Hold in Darfur's Capital of El Fasher

 African Arguments posted on 26 August 2025 a commentary titled "El Fasher Is Sudan's Gaza as a Place of Mass Starvation" by Susanne Jaspars and Tamer Mohamed.

The siege of Darfur's capital of El Fasher by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has sharply limited the amount of food reaching the city.  As a result, starvation is taking hold.  

Controversy Over Funding of Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam

 The BBC posted on 23 July 2025 an article titled "Ethiopian Official Denies Donald Trump's Claim that US Funded River Nile Dam" by Wedaeli Chibelushi.

President Trump asserted in a meeting last week that "US money largely" funded the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.  An Ethiopian official responded that Ethiopia built the dam "without any foreign aid."  The money came from Ethiopian bonds sold to companies, pledges from Ethiopian government civil service salaries, and donations from the Ethiopian diaspora.

Comment:  I am not aware of any US government funding for the dam.  The Ethiopian diaspora in the United States made a modest but not precisely known contribution to GERD funding.  

Tigray Secession Movement in Ethiopia

 Ethiopia Insight published on 22 July 2025 a commentary titled "Tigray Needs Democracy Before Secession" by Abrar Fitwi, St. Mary's College in Indiana.  

The author comments on the agenda of the recently created Tigrayan diaspora advocacy group called Voice of Independent Tigray (VIT) based in Maryland.  While the author does not oppose self-determination, he argues that it must be based on a democratic foundation or it will become something hollow or worse, oppressive.  

Comment:  Tigrayans need to ask themselves at least one more question.  Would a democratic and independent Tigray be economically viable or just another small, landlocked state largely dependent on foreign assistance?   

USAID Cuts Resulting in Deaths in Sudan

 The Washington Post published on 29 June 2025 an article titled "In Sudan, Where Children Clung to Life, Doctors Say USAID Cuts Have Been Fatal" by Katharine Houreld.  

Following the dismantlement of USAID and cuts in support for community soup kitchens and the end of critical medical supplies in Sudan, more Sudanese are dying.  The World Health Organization estimates that 5 million Sudanese may lose access to lifesaving health services as a result of the US cuts.  

Ethiopia: Tigray's Hijacked Transition

 Ethiopia Insight published on 14 May 2025 a commentary titled "Tigray's Hijacked Transition" by Weldeslassie Hailai Abera, University of KwaZulu-Natal.  

The author argues that a faction led by Debretsion Gebremichael led an "illegitimate power grab" of the Tigray People's Liberation Front.  He concludes that Tigray's future depends on a fundamental shift: bringing the Tigray Defense Forces under civilian control, dismantling ethnic-based patronage, and empowering youth and the diaspora.  

Grassroots Community Campaign in Sudan Saves Lives

 Time published on 16 January 2025 a commentary titled "Locals in Sudan Are Saving Lives that International Aid Agencies Can't Reach" by Karl Vick.

Sudan faces the world's largest humanitarian crisis, and the government has ceased to function.  A grass roots campaign has created more than 600 pop-up community centers known as Emergency Response Rooms (EERs) to do what would normally be expected of a government.  

US Support for Regime Change in Eritrea: A Bad Idea

 The conservative American Enterprise Institute published on 6 January 2025 a commentary titled "Eritrea Is the North Korea of Africa: America Must Act" by Michael Rubin.  

The author argues that while U.S. forces have no business in Eritrea nor would their deployment be wise, "the United States should openly support regime change."  He adds that incoming President Donald Trump should empower his National Security Council and Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs "to help Eritreans rid the world of one of its worst regimes."

Comment:  While Eritrea is poorly governed and no friend of the United States, U.S. government supported regime change is not the answer.  This is a task for Eritreans themselves.  Any concerted effort by the United States to change the government in Eritrea will almost certainly end badly and even be resented by many Africans who also have a negative opinion of the regime.

Suggestions for Canada's Engagement in Africa in Shadow of China

 Canada's Institute for Research on Public Policy published on its digital Policy Options platform on 26 September 2024 a commentary titled "As China Courts Africa, Canada Must Rethink Its Africa Strategy" by Isaac Odoom, Carleton University.  

The expansion of China's engagement in Africa poses a challenge for Canada to find a path to work with Africa in a meaningful way.  The author says Canada should offer something distinct from Western paternalism and China's transactional partnerships.  He suggests that Canada leverage its African diaspora, capitalize on strength in green energy and digital innovation, invest in training African youth, and promote good governance.  

Ethiopian-American to Head Harris Transition Team

 NBC News published on 23 August 2024 an article titled "Harris Transition Team Takes Shape with a Biden Official in Key Post" by Aaron Gilchrist.

The Kamala Harris campaign tapped Ethiopian-American and current ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Yohannes Abraham, to head the presidential transition team if she wins the upcoming election against Donald Trump.  In 2020, Yohannes was the executive director of the Biden transition team.  He was born in Virginia; his parents immigrated from Ethiopia.  

Somali Capacities to Respond to Crisis Are Changing

 Humanitarian Outcomes published in October 2023 a study titled "Somali Capacities to Respond to Crisis Are Changing; How Are Humanitarian Actors Responding?" by multiple authors.

Somalia is often seen from the outside as a failed state, home of terrorists and pirates, chronically corrupt, and prone to famine and crisis.  But in the decade since the 2011 famine, Somali capacities to respond to crisis have grown, and international aid needs to support those capacities more effectively.  This study focused on the resilience capacities of Somali citizens and systems, and how the humanitarian system has engaged with them.  

Podcast on Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa

 Seattle-based Dhugaa Media posted on 3 February 2024 a 54-minute podcast titled "Focus on Ethiopia and the Horn Region" with me moderated by Nagessa Oddo Dube.  

This is a wide-ranging discussion of issues in the Horn of Africa with a focus on Ethiopia, Somalia, Somaliland, Djibouti, and Eritrea.  

Ongoing Atrocities in Sudan's Darfur Region

 Refugees International published on 1 February 2024 a detailed report titled "Bearing Witness: Atrocities and Looming Hunger in Darfur" by Daniel P. Sullivan.  

Sudan now has the largest number (more than 10 million) of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the world.  Refugees from Darfur in Chad are overwhelming the humanitarian response.  In December 2023, the United States made an official atrocity designation for Sudan.  

Chinese Soft Power and Diaspora in Sierra Leone

 The China Global South Project published on 15 December 2023 an article titled "The Chinese on the Lion Mountain: Peering into China's Diaspora and Soft Power in Sierra Leone" by Susan Su.

The article looks at the impact of the Chinese diaspora community in Sierra Leone.  The capital of Freetown has experienced an influx of Chinese businesses, many attracted by the growth of Chinese infrastructure projects and investments in the mining, timber, and fishing industries.  But there are also concerns that the diaspora has become overly involved in local politics.