Constitution of Somalia (Dastuurka Soomaaliya): 1960 to 2026

Somalia's constitutions in order

Sources: Constitution of Somalia, Wikipedia; Transitional governments, 2000 to 2012; UN Political Office for Somalia, 1 August 2012.

• 1960: the constitution set up a parliamentary republic. See The 1960 Constitution.
• 1979: the constitution set up a presidential system with one party.
• 2004: the Provisional Constitution of 2012 repealed the 2004 charter (Article 19, 2012).

The 2012 Provisional Constitution

A National Constituent Assembly of 825 members met in Mogadishu and adopted the text on 1 August 2012. The vote was 621 for, 13 against and 11 abstentions (UNPOS, 1 August 2012). It has 15 chapters. Among its main points (Provisional Constitution 2012, via Constitute Project):

• The state: Somalia is a federal republic. Islam is the religion of the state, and no law may go against Sharia (Article 2).
• Language: Somali (Maay and Maxaa-tiri) is the official language and Arabic the second language (Article 5).
• The capital: Mogadishu is the capital (Article 9).
• Rights: Chapter 2 sets out a bill of rights. Article 15 bans the circumcision of girls.
• The federal system: Chapter 5 sets out the levels of government.
• Parliament: Chapter 6 covers the Federal Parliament.
• Independent commissions: Chapter 10 sets them up.
• Referendum: the text stays provisional until the public approves it in a referendum.

The review, 2012 to 2026

The constitution was meant to be reviewed and put to a referendum within a few years. The review took more than 14 years. Under President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the Independent Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission and a parliamentary oversight committee were set up again. In January 2024 the two houses of parliament agreed how amendments would be adopted, in three parts: chapters 1 to 4, 5 to 9 and 10 to 15 (ConstitutionNet, International IDEA, 7 April 2026).

30 March 2024: chapters 1 to 4. In the House of the People, 212 of 275 members voted for the changes; in the Upper House, 42 of 54 did. The President signed them the next day (same source; SONNA). The changes:

• The President: to be elected directly, and to appoint and dismiss the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister still needs the confidence of the House of the People.
• Parliament: one-person-one-vote elections in place of the clan-delegate system used since 2000.
• Parties: at least three national parties.
• Terms: five-year terms with a single general election.

Puntland suspended cooperation with the federal government and said the 2012 text was the only legitimate one (ConstitutionNet, as above).

4 March 2026: chapters 5 to 15. These passed with 185 votes in the House of the People and 37 in the Upper House, together with some changes to chapters 2 and 4. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud signed them on 8 March 2026 (ConstitutionNet, as above). According to ConstitutionNet, the changes:

• Powers: share out powers among the federal, state and local levels, and recognise local government as a third tier.
• Mogadishu: Banadir becomes the capital, with law-making powers and seats in the Upper House.
• Courts and commissions: they set out the Constitutional Court, the court structure, the commissions and the security institutions.
• Revenue: they set how revenue is raised and shared.
• Elections: the House of the People is elected directly, while the President is chosen by parliament and the Upper House by the state leaders. There is no cap on the number of parties, but a party needs 10 percent of the vote to enter parliament.
• Terms: five years for parliament and the President. Speaker Aden Mohamed Nur said this applied to the sitting office holders.

A Supreme Judicial Council was set up under the new text in 2026 (Somalia's courts). The Minister of Justice said in October 2026 that putting the constitution into effect could take up to five years (Ministry of Justice). The referendum required by Article 136(2) has no date yet.

The dispute

• The term extension: without the 2026 amendments, parliament's term would have ended on 16 April 2026 and the President's on 15 May 2026 (Africa at LSE, May 2026).
• The member states: Puntland withdrew recognition of the federal government in 2024. Jubaland suspended ties in November 2024, after electoral laws were passed. Days after the March 2026 signing, the then president of South West State said he was cutting ties and rejected the amendments. That made three of the six member states (ConstitutionNet, as above).
• The opposition: the Somali Future Council calls the extension unconstitutional and rejects the vote (same sources). See Politics of Somalia.
• Parliament: in February 2026, opposition-aligned MPs disrupted sittings. 19 MPs were suspended, then six more (ConstitutionNet, as above).
• The court ruling: in early November 2026, five judges of the Supreme Court's Constitutional Division ruled that the terms of the President, parliament and federal government had ended. The Attorney General's office said the ruling had no legal effect. Ibrahim Idle Suleiman was sworn in as Chief Justice on 7 November 2026 (Dawan Africa, November 2026).

For the elections that follow from the constitution, see Elections in Somalia.

How to read it

The 2012 English text is on the Constitute Project site. The official English text of 1960 is on the parliament's website, and the House of the People publishes laws on parliament.gov.so. ConstitutionNet tracks the review process.

Its legal basis

Article 136 of the 2012 Provisional Constitution sets the procedure for amendment and for the final referendum.